Notice issued to a deceased person is void; later notice to legal heir cannot cure the defect.

A notice issued in the name of a person who had already died was fundamentally defective and illegal, and the defect could not be cured under Section 292BB of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Because the initial notice was void, a later notice issued to the legal heir did not validate the reassessment proceedings or remedy the foundational defect. The challenge therefore succeeded in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether a notice issued in the name of a deceased person is valid, and whether a subsequent notice issued to the legal heir can cure the initial defect.

Analysis: A notice issued in the name of a person who had already died was held to be fundamentally defective and illegal. The defect was treated as incurable under Section 292BB of the Income-tax Act, 1961. Since the initial notice itself was void, the later notice issued to the legal heir could not remedy the foundational illegality or validate the reassessment proceedings.

Conclusion: The notice issued in the name of the deceased was invalid, and the subsequent notice to the legal heir did not cure the defect. The challenge succeeded in favour of the assessee.

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