Court Grants Adinterim Relief, Restrains Reopening Assessment Without New Material

The court granted adinterim relief to the petitioner, restraining the respondent from further actions to reopen the assessment based on a change of opinion without new material. The court questioned the jurisdiction under section 147 of the Income Tax Act as the assessment was being reopened beyond the prescribed period without failure to disclose material facts. An interim order was issued for a returnable notice date, allowing for direct service and scheduling the matter alongside a related application for further consideration.

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Issues:
1. Reopening of assessment based on change of opinion.
2. Jurisdiction under section 147 of the Income Tax Act.
3. Adinterim relief against the notice to reopen assessment.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Reopening of assessment based on change of opinion
The petitioner's advocate argued that the Assessing Officer sought to reopen the assessment without relying on any external material but solely on a different view based on existing records. The petitioner had previously provided all necessary details, including the purchase of nonagricultural land and the relevant permissions. It was contended that the reopening was merely due to a change of opinion by the Assessing Officer, which was unjustified. The advocate highlighted that the superior officer's sanction under section 151 of the Act was granted mechanically without proper evaluation of the case's specifics.

Issue 2: Jurisdiction under section 147 of the Income Tax Act
The petitioner emphasized that the assessment was being reopened beyond the four-year period from the relevant assessment year. It was argued that since there was no failure on the petitioner's part to disclose all material facts, the Assessing Officer's jurisdiction under section 147 of the Act was questioned as lacking legal authority. The petitioner contended that the reopening of the assessment in this case was not justified under the law.

Issue 3: Adinterim relief against the notice to reopen assessment
Considering the submissions made by the petitioner's advocate, the court issued a notice returnable on a specified date. Additionally, an adinterim relief was granted, restraining the respondent from further actions pursuant to the notice dated 31.3.2018, seeking to reopen the assessment for the relevant assessment year. The court allowed for a direct service and scheduled the matter to be heard in conjunction with another related application.

This detailed analysis of the judgment highlights the arguments presented by the petitioner, the legal grounds questioned, and the interim relief granted by the court pending further proceedings.

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