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TMI Blog2025 (2) TMI 444X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 021 was issued. Thereafter, following the directions of Hon'ble Supreme Court issued vide order dated 04.05.2022 in civil appeal no. 3005/2022, union of India and ors. V. Ashish Agarwal, assessee was provided an opportunity of hearing before passing order u/s. 148A(d) of the Act dated 29.07.2022 with prior approval of specified authority. Accordingly, notice u/s. 148 of the Act dated 29.07.2022 was issued and served upon the assessee. Assessee did not file his return of income in response to the notice u/s. 148 of the Act. Statutory notices were issued. Assessee furnished required details. Learned assessing officer after considering the submission of assessee, held the sum to be an unexplained money and undertook certain variations to the appellant and passed draft assessment order dated 29.05.2023 proposing the addition in assessee's income to the extent of Rs. 7,35,000/-. Assessee filed objections before CIT(DRP-1), Mumbai-3 on 28.06.2023, wherein DRP Panvel upheld the view of the assessing officer, treating the sums in question as unexplained one and rejected assessee's objections. Learned assessing officer, accordingly passed the impugned assessment order on 09.03.2024 at part ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rused the records. Heard learned representative for the appellant assessee and learned DR for the respondent revenue. 5. The assessee has drawn the attention of the bench towards additional ground no. 1 (out of 5 additional grounds) raised by the assessee on 08.11.2024, submitting that the learned assessing officer has not obtained the approval of the specified authority u/s. 151 of the Act, hence the assessment order is bad in law. 6. Learned DR has supported the impugned assessment order. 7. Hon'ble Apex Court in National Thermal Power Co. Ltd. V. CIT(1998) 229 ITR has held that the Tribunal has jurisdiction to examine a question of law which arises from the facts as found by the authorities below and having a bearing on the tax liability to the assessee. The additional ground No. 2 raised by assessee is a pure question of law, hence we admit the same and proceed first to determine this pure question of law. 8. We note that Hon'ble Supreme Court, vide order dated 03.10.2024 passed in civil appeal no. 8629/2024, Union of India and Ors. V. Rajeev Bansal has settled the issue in dispute in respect of taking approval from the appropriate authority u/s. 151 of the Act before issua ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... as specified different authorities for granting sanctions under Section 151. The new regime is beneficial to the assessee because it specifies a higher level of authority for the grant of sanctions in comparison to the old regime. Therefore, in terms of Ashish Agarwal (supra), after 1 April 2021, the prior approval must be obtained from the appropriate authorities specified under Section 151 of the new regime. The effect of Section 151 of the new regime is thus: (i) If income escaping assessment is less than Rupees fifty lakhs (a) a reassessment notice could be issued within three years after obtaining the prior approval of the Principal Commissioner, or Principal Director or Commissioner or Director, and (b) no notice could be issued after the expiry of three years, and (ii) If income escaping assessment is more than Rupees fifty lakhs (a) a reassessment notice could be issued within three years after obtaining the prior approval of the Principal Commissioner, or Principal Director or Commissioner or Director; and (b) after three years after obtaining the prior approval of the Principal Chief Commissioner or Principal Director General or Chief Commissioner or Director General ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... )- to conduct any enquiry, if required, with respect to the information which suggests that the income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment, b. Section 148A(b) - to provide an opportunity of hearing to the assessee by serving upon them a show cause notice as to why a notice under Section 148 should not be issued based on the information that suggests that income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment. It must be noted that this requirement has been deleted by the Finance Act 2022: c. Section 148A(d)- to pass an order deciding whether or not it is a fit case for issuing a notice under Section 148, and d. Section 148- to issue a reassessment notice. 80. In Ashish Agarwal (supra), this Court directed that Section 148 notices which were challenged before various High Courts "shall be deemed to have been issued under Section 148-A of the Income Tax Act as substituted by the Finance Act, 2021 and construed or treated to be show-cause notices in terms of Section 148-A(b)." Further, this Court dispensed with the requirement of conducting any enquiry with the prior approval of the specified authority under Section 148A(a). Under Section 148A(b), an assessing officer was requir ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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