Reassessment jurisdiction under section 147(b) fails where reopening rests on change of opinion, not fresh information.

Reopening under section 147(b) requires fresh information received after the original assessment, capable of supporting a reasonable belief that income had escaped assessment. The recorded reasons did not rely on any later appellate order for the relevant subsequent year and instead treated the assessee's explanation as newly disclosed before the appellate authority. That basis amounted only to a change of opinion, not fresh information within the statutory requirement. The reassessment proceedings were therefore invalid and the assumption of jurisdiction under section 147(b) was bad in law.

---

---

Issues: Whether reassessment could be initiated under section 147(b) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 on the basis of fresh information, and whether the recorded reasons disclosed a valid assumption of jurisdiction.

Analysis: Reopening under section 147(b) requires fresh information coming to the Income-tax Officer after the original assessment, on the basis of which a reasonable belief can be formed that income has escaped assessment. The recorded reasons did not refer to the later appellate order for the relevant subsequent assessment year, but proceeded on the footing that the assessee's explanation had been disclosed for the first time before the appellate authority. On that basis, the reopening rested only on a change of opinion and not on fresh information as required by law.

Conclusion: The reassessment proceedings were invalid for want of fresh information, and the assumption of jurisdiction under section 147(b) was bad in law.

---