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TMI Blog2023 (12) TMI 706X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... cted by taking recourse of section 292B of the Act. The Hon ble Delhi High Court explained the binding effect of CBDT Circular and held that in the light of CBDT Circular, any communication issued by any Income-tax Authority relating to assessment, appeals, orders, statutory or otherwise, explanations, enquiry, investigation, verification of information, penalty, prosecution, rectification, approval etc. to the assessee or any other person on or after the first day of October, 2019 shall have no standing in law unless a computer generated Document Identification Number (DIN) has been allotted and is duly reflected in the body of such communication subject to exceptional circumstances referred to in para 3 of CBDT Circular. It is an admitted position that the approval granted u/s 153D by the Addl. CIT to the draft assessment order is without issuance of DIN. The approval under section 153D which is the fulcrum for passing final assessment order dated 19.02.2021 in question is thus apparently non-est in law in the absence of DIN allocated to such communication at all. The final assessment order so passed under s. 153A in question on the basis of such invalid and non-est approval unde ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ar No.19 of 2019 for communicating/recording mandatory computer generated Document Identification Number on the order/notice of demand under section 156 have not been fulfilled." 4. The assessee also moved another application dated 09.02.2022 for admission of yet another additional ground under Rule 11 of the Income-tax (Appellate Tribunal) Rules, 1963 and sought leave of the Tribunal for admission of the additional ground, which reads as under: "That the order dated 28.08.2021 passed u/s 250 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 by the Ld. Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) 23, New Delhi is against law and facts on the file in as much as he was not justified to uphold the validity of assessment framed by the Ld AO since the same is bad in law in as much as the approval granted by the Ld. ACIT under section 153D of the Act before passing the impugned assessment order was mechanical in nature and thus the whole assessment is liable to be quashed." 5. The prayer for admission of additional grounds noted above which are not set forth in the memorandum of appeal are being admitted for adjudication in terms of Rule 11 of Income-tax (Appellate Tribunal) Rules, 1963 owing to the fact that obj ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Brandix Mauritius Holdings Ltd. 149 taxmann.com 238 (del.)/456 ITR 34 (Delhi) : It is the specific requirement under Circular 2019 to quote DIN in the body of communication. Existence of Exceptional circumstances provided in para 3 of the Circular not demonstrated by revenue. Communication of order issued without conformity of Circular invalid. Failure to generate and allocate DIN is not a mere mistake or omission or a procedural irregularity. Recourse to Section 292B is not available for non-adherence to the Board Circular on mentioning DIN • Ashok Commercial Enterprises vs. ACIT, Writ Petition No.2595 of 2021, Bombay High Court : HC noted Circular 19 of 2019 to observe that the assessment order does not bear a DIN and further that the order issued without a DIN is not issued in required format as set out in paragraph 3 of the Circular and, therefore, ought to be treated as invalid and deemed never to have been issued. Relies on Delhi HC ruling in Brandix Mauritius wherein it was held that an order passed in contravention of the said Circular is void, bad in law and of no legal effect. Also, noted the intimation with a DIN issued to regularise such orders without ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... : We are unable to appreciate this decision of the DRP, since there is no provision in the Act to issue two order u/s 92CA and the order issued subsequent cannot be taken to substitute the earlier order. If the order dated 01.11.2019 is taken as the valid order for subsequent proceedings since it is issued with a DIN, then the issue of the order being barred by limitation should be considered. • Sunita Agarwal vs. ITO, ITA No.432/Kol/2020, Kolkata ITAT : In the absence of DIN, the order passed by PCIT u/s 263 is quashed. • Mahesh Kumar Sureka vs. PCIT, ITA No.106/Kol/2021, Kolkata ITAT : In view of the discussion made above and in the light of the decisions of the Co-ordinate Kolkata Bench of the Tribunal in the cases of "Tata Medical Center Trust" (supra) and "Smt. Sunita Agarwal vs ITO" (supra), the impugned order of Ld CIT(Exemption) is, hereby, quashed. • Abhimanyu Chaturvedi vs. DCIT, Noida, ITA No.2486/Del/2022, Delhi ITAT : Distinguished the Judgement of Prakash Lal Khandelwal(Jharkhand), the fact is that in that case Hon'ble High Court was more into examination of the question of assessment order dated 31.03.2022 being barred by limitation ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the assessee challenging the Assessment Order/Notice of demand u/s 156 on the alleged ground of DIN not being quoted- The AO, DCIT, Central Circle-4, Delhi had been asked to provide the details as desired by the Hon'ble Bench on 04.07.2023 and also to produce the assessment records together with a report in the matter. However, the same is awaited, for which a reminder has been sent. Notwithstanding the above, the following submissions in the matter are humbly made after going through the case records relating to proceedings in the case before the Hon'ble Bench - • The Assessment Order dated 19.12.2021 issued in the instant case does bear a DIN in compliance to the Circular dated 14.08.2019 of the CBDT. This DIN is quoted in a letter dated 20.12.2021 addressed to the assessee and reads as follows- • 'This is to inform you that an Order u/s 153A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 dated 19/02/2021 is having Document No. (DIN) ITBA/AST/M/153Α/2020-21/1030819568(1).' • [It may be mentioned that the letter so issued it bears a DIN which is quoted at the top of the letter.] • Thus, the communication was issued with the DIN, complying with the Bo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... td., wherein the Hon'ble Court has upheld the decision of the Hon'ble Tribunal ('D' Bench) in treating Assessment Order as null and void for lack of DIN. • It is humbly submitted herein that the instant case of the appellant under discussion, M/s Finesse International Design, differs substantially from the facts of the case decided upon by the Hon'ble Courts in that in this case DIN has indeed been generated, albeit a day later, for procedural reasons as mentioned hereinabove. • As stated by the Ld. Counsel for the appellant himself in the submission before the Hon'ble Bench, and also mentioned by the Hon'ble Courts in the Orders referred to above, the purpose of the Board's Circular dated 14.08.2019 is to maintain a proper audit trail of such communication, which purpose, in the instant case, is duly fulfilled. • Notwithstanding the above submissions, reliance may also be placed herein on Section 292B of the Income-tax Act, 1961 as per which intent and purpose of the Act is important defect/mistake/omission will not make any notice or assessment etc. invalid. • 'No return of income, assessment, notice, summons or othe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... vestigation, verification of information, penalty, prosecution, rectification, approval etc. to the assessee or any other person, on or after the 1st day of October, 2019 unless a computer generated Document Identification Number (DIN) has been allotted and is duly quoted in the body of such communication. Para 3 of the Circular enumerates for exceptional circumstances. 16. The CBDT circular also provides that any such order, notice, correspondence etc. which does not bear the DIN in the body of communication shall be treated as invalid in the eyes of law and shall be deemed to have never been received. The obligation is stated to be of substantial nature as explained by Jurisdictional High Court and other Hon'ble Court and Tribunals. 17. The issue thus raised in the additional ground is thus no longer res integra. The Hon'ble Delhi High Court in the case of CIT vs. Brandix Mauritius Holdings Ltd. (supra) clearly underscored the binding nature of CBDT Circular No.19/2019 dated 14.08.2019 and stated in unequivocal terms that the assessment order passed without DIN is unsustainable in law owning to failure of the Department to allocate DIN and such failure cannot be regarded as an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... with the mandate of CBDT Circular in letter and spirit and sheds light on the significance of maintaining procedural integrity and upholding the principles of transparency and accountability in the realm of income tax assessments. The strict compliance of Circular is thus cardinal & integral to the validity of assessment. 20. It is an admitted position that the approval granted under s. 153D by the Addl. CIT to the draft assessment order is without issuance of DIN. In the backdrop of nuanced judicial view, the approval under section 153D which is the fulcrum for passing final assessment order dated 19.02.2021 in question is thus apparently non-est in law in the absence of DIN allocated to such communication at all. The final assessment order so passed under s. 153A in question on the basis of such invalid and non-est approval under section 153D is thus without sanction of law. The assessment order dated 19.02.2021 passed under s. 153A is thus liable to be quashed at threshold. Similarly, notice of demand under s. 156 without DIN and on the basis of non-est assessment order is also to be reckoned as a nullity. 21. Having held the assessment order passed is vitiated owning to non ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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