Mandatory notice under Section 143(2) is jurisdictional for scrutiny assessments; absence of valid notice renders the assessment void.

In a scrutiny assessment under Section 143(3) of the Income-tax Act, a valid notice under Section 143(2) is a mandatory jurisdictional requirement, and the assessment cannot be sustained without it. Here, the assessment records and order sheet did not establish valid service of notice; the notice referred to was inconsistent with the return filing and was time-barred. Section 292BB did not cure the defect. The assessment was therefore void ab initio for want of a valid Section 143(2) notice.

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Issues: Whether the assessment framed under Section 143(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 was valid in the absence of a valid notice under Section 143(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Analysis: The assessment order and the order sheet did not establish issuance of a valid notice under Section 143(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The notice referred to in the assessment order was also found to be inconsistent with the filing of the return and, in any event, time-barred. In a scrutiny assessment under Section 143(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, issuance of a valid notice under Section 143(2) is mandatory, and the defect was not cured by Section 292BB of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Conclusion: The assessment was held to be void ab initio for want of a valid notice under Section 143(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Ratio Decidendi: In a scrutiny assessment under Section 143(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, a valid notice under Section 143(2) is a mandatory jurisdictional requirement, and its absence renders the assessment invalid.

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