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TMI Blog2024 (10) TMI 1092X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n Bench of this Court in the case of Hexaware Technologies Limited [ 2024 (5) TMI 302 - BOMBAY HIGH COURT ] wherein held Court held that it was not permissible for the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer to issue a notice u/s 148, as the same would amount to breach of the provisions of section 151A of the IT Act. There is no question of concurrent jurisdiction of the JAO and the FAO for issuance of notice u/s 148 of the Act or even 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 r ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... under Section 148A (d) dated 29 March, 2024 and the consequent notice dated 29 March, 2024 issued under Section 148 of the Act are all issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer ( JAO ) and not by a Faceless Assessing Officer ( FAO ), as is required by the provisions of Section 151A of the Act. 5. To give effect to the provisions of Section 151A, the Central Government has issued a Notification dated 29 March 2022 whereby a faceless mechanism has been introduced. Thus, necessarily in resorting to a procedure under Section 148A and the consequent notice to be issued under Section 148 of the Act, the Assessing Officer is required to adhere to the provisions of Section 151A read with the Notification. Thus, for a notice to be validly issue ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he 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 intelligence and machine learning with a view to optimise the use of resources. Therefore, it means that the case can be allocated randomly to any officer who would then have jurisdiction to issue the notice under Section 148 of the Act. It is not the case of respondent no.1 that respondent no.1 was the random officer who had been allocated jurisdiction. 36. With respect to the arguments of the Revenue, i.e., the notification dated 29th March 2022 provides that the Scheme so framed is applicable only to the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eals with the aspect of issuance of notice under Section 148 of the Act. Respondents, being an authority subordinate to the CBDT, cannot argue that the Scheme framed by the CBDT, and which has been laid before both House of Parliament is partly otiose and inapplicable. .. 37 When an authority acts contrary to law, the said act of the Authority is required to be quashed and set aside as invalid and bad in law and the person seeking to quash such an action is not required to establish prejudice from the said Act. An act which is done by an authority contrary to the provisions of the statue, itself causes prejudice to assessee. All assessees are entitled to be assessed as per law and by following the procedure prescribed by law. Therefore, whe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... provisions of Section 151A of the Act. 8. Learned counsel for the petitioner has also drawn our attention to the decision of this Court in Kairos Properties Pvt. Ltd. vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax and Ors. Writ Petition (L) No. 22686 of 2024 dated 05.08.2024 where the Court considered the effect of scheme as notified by the Central Government under the notification dated 29 March, 2022. The Court, considering the relevant provisions, has held that this scheme as notified in paragraph 3 of the notification would take within its ambit steps taken by the Revenue in issuing notice under section 148A (b) as also an order passed under Section 148A (d), so as to be included within the ambit of Section 151A of the Act. In this view of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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