Practice support: Assessment of right person is required even if a wrong person has already been assessed on the same income – wrongly assessed person can seek remedy.

Practice support:

Assessment of right person is required even if a wrong person has already been assessed  on the  same income  – wrongly assessed person  can seek remedy.

Income in hands of right person and in right year:

Assessee, previous year relevant to assessment year and assessment year  are very relevant for the purpose of assessment of income and determination of year in which it can be assessed.

Income has to be assessed in hands of right person  and it has to be assessed in relevant year.

An income belonging and assessable in hands of A cannot be assessed in hands of B.

Similarly, income assessable in a particular year cannot be assessed in any other year.  The year can be determined according to specific provisions and method of accounting followed by assessee.

Practical aspect:

The above rules are fundamental and on proper application, many times a winning case can be made out.

Income, if not assessed in relevant year  within prescribed time, may not be assessable in relevant year due to several reasons like limitation and lack of jurisdiction.

Similarly, assessment in proper hands may not be possible by tax authority due to limitation and lack of jurisdiction.

These aspects can be usefully applied in various situations For example cases of  Members and AOP, HUF and its coparceners and members, firm and partners, situations where clubbing provisions apply or are intended to be invoked.

Therefore,  about relevant year of assessment – method of accounting and accrual or receipt of income, year to which income relates, applicable law in particular situation etc. can be explored.

 Cases reported under reference are:

Principal Commissioner Of Income Tax (Central) MP And CG Versus Ramswaroop Shivhare - 2025 (9) TMI 176 - SC Order

Related judgment of High Court  is reported as

Principal Commissioner of Income Tax Central, Principal Commissioner of Income Tax (Central) Bhopal Versus Shri Ramesh Chandra Rai, Shri Harmindar Singh Bhatia, Shri Ramswaroop Shivhare, Vikram Singh, Laxmi Narayan Shivhare, Hari Mohan Shivhare - 2024 (10) TMI 1288 - MADHYA PRADESH HIGH COURT

In this case the following judgment of the Supreme Court  was applied:

Income-Tax Officer Versus Ch. Atchaiah - 1995 (12) TMI 1 - Supreme Court

In these cases the  issue related to situation of AOP and its members and assessment in proper hands.

It was held that where a person is taxed wrongfully, he is no doubt entitled to be relieved of it in accordance with law  and 

Merely because a wrong person is taxed with respect to a particular income, the Assessing Officer is not precluded from taxing the right person with respect to that income

Therefore, the Assessee and the Assessing Officer both are at liberty to ensure their interest.

There are  several cases referred to, followed and  or dissented in various cases cited in the list of cases cited. . A study of the same is useful for application of above rules in any given circumstances. Care should however, be taken to  understand applicable provision of law in particular circumstances and particular year.

The purpose of this write-up is to draw attention of readers and invoke interest to study various judgments and to find out whether these fundamentals can be applied in case of readers and their clients. To explore possibilities to prepare to contest on various contentions.

These fundamentals can be usefully applied when a case is prepared for representation and also at stage of reply to any notice for assessment, rectification, revision or reassessment etc.