9911796707
TMI Blog2024 (7) TMI 589X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d finally. 2. This petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India challenges a notice dated 28 March, 2024 issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) under section 148A (b) of Income-tax Act (for short the Act ) as also an order dated 24 April, 2024 passed on such notice under section 148A (d) and as a consequence thereof, a notice issued to the petitioner under section 148 of the even date. The substantive prayers as made in the petition can be noted, which reads thus: (a) this Hon ble Court may be pleased to issue a writ of Certiorari or a writ in the nature of Certiorari or any other appropriate writ, order or direction under Article 226 of the Constitution of India calling for the records of the petitioner s case and after examining the legality and validity thereof quash and set aside the impugned initial notice dated 28th March, 2024 (Exhibit- HH hereto) issued under section 148A (b) of the Act, the impugned order dated 24th April, 2024 ( Exhibit-JJ hereto) passed under section 148A (d) and the impugned notice dated 24th April, 2024 issued under section 148 of the Act ( Exhibit- KK hereto) by respondent no. 1 seeking to reopen the assessment for the AY 2017 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to implement Section 151A, the jurisdiction of the JAO to issue notice under Section 148A (b) was divested and replaced by the Faceless Assessment. It is hence submitted that any notice issued by the JAO was rendered illegal and invalid. In this context, our attention is drawn to the following observations of the Court : 32. As regards issue no. 4, Section 151A reads as under : Faceless assessment of income escaping assessment. 151A . (1) The Central Government may make a scheme, by notification in the Official Gazette, for the purposes of assessment, reassessment or recomputation under section 147 or issuance of notice under section 148 [or conducting of enquiries or issuance of show-cause notice or passing of order under section 148A] or sanction for issue of such notice under section 151, so as to impart greater efficiency, transparency and accountability by (a) eliminating the interface between the income-tax authority and the assessee or any other person to the extent technologically feasible; (b) optimising utilisation of the resources through economies of scale and functional specialisation; (c) introducing a team-based assessment, reassessment, recomputation or issuance or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for passing assessment or reassessment order. When specific jurisdiction has been assigned to either the JAO or the FAO in the Scheme dated 29th March, 2022, then it is to the exclusion of the other. To take any other view in the matter, would not only result in chaos but also render the whole faceless proceedings redundant. If the argument of Revenue is to be accepted, then even when notices are issued by the FAO, it would be open to an assessee to make submission before the JAO and vice versa, which is clearly not contemplated in the Act. Therefore, there is no question of concurrent jurisdiction of both FAO or the JAO with respect to the issuance of notice under Section 148 of the Act. The Scheme dated 29th March 2022 in paragraph 3 clearly provides that the issuance of notice shall be through automated allocation which means that the same is mandatory and is required to be followed by the Department and does not give any discretion to the Department to choose whether to follow it or not. That automated allocation is defined in paragraph 2(b) of the Scheme to mean an algorithm for randomised allocation of cases by using suitable technological tools including artificial intellige ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... use 3(b) of the Scheme is not applicable, then only clause 3(a) of the Scheme remains. What is covered in clause 3(a) of the Scheme is already provided in Section 144B (1) of the Act, which Section provides for faceless assessment, and covers assessment, reassessment or re-computation under Section 147 of the Act. Therefore, if Revenue s arguments are to be accepted, there is no purpose of framing a Scheme only for clause 3(a) which is in any event already covered under faceless assessment regime in Section 144B of the Act. The argument of respondent, therefore, renders the whole Scheme redundant. An argument which renders the whole Scheme otiose cannot be accepted as correct interpretation of the Scheme. The phrase to the extent provided in Section 144B of the Act in the Scheme is with reference to only making assessment or reassessment or total income or loss of assessee. Therefore, for the purposes of making assessment or reassessment, the provisions of Section 144B of the Act would be applicable as no such manner for reassessment is separately provided in the Scheme. For issuing notice, the term to the extent provided in Section 144B of the Act is not relevant. The Scheme provi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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