Specific charge in section 270A penalty notice is essential; unspecific initiation cannot be cured by the final order.

Penalty proceedings under section 270A of the Income-tax Act were found defective where the show cause notices did not specify the relevant limb under sub-section (9). Proper notice of the exact charge is required at initiation, and a final penalty order cannot cure that foundational defect. In the absence of a specific allegation, the assessee was treated as prejudiced and the defect was regarded as incurable, rendering the penalty orders unsustainable and resulting in deletion of the penalties.

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Issues: Whether penalty proceedings under Section 270A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 were vitiated where the show cause notices did not specify the relevant limb under sub-section (9) and the final penalty orders were based on that unspecific initiation.

Analysis: The show cause notices initiating penalty proceedings did not communicate the precise charge or the relevant limb under Section 270A(9). The penalty orders could not cure this foundational defect, since proper notice of the exact allegation is required at the stage of initiation itself. In the absence of a specific charge, the assessee was held to have been prejudiced and the defect was treated as incurable.

Conclusion: The penalty orders were held unsustainable and were deleted.

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