Section 148A pre-notice procedure excluded where Section 132A requisition proceedings had already been initiated

Notices issued under Section 148 of the Income-tax Act were examined against the mandatory pre-notice procedure in Section 148A. The court considered whether the absence of Section 148A inquiry and opportunity invalidated the notices, but found that requisition proceedings had already been initiated under Section 132A in relation to cash seized by the police. As the matter fell within the first proviso to Section 148A, the pre-notice inquiry requirement did not apply. The Section 148 notices were therefore not invalid on the ground of non-compliance with Section 148A.

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Issues: Whether notices issued under Section 148 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 were invalid for want of compliance with Section 148A of the Income-tax Act, 1961, or whether the first proviso to Section 148A applied because proceedings had been initiated under Section 132A of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Analysis: The notices under Section 148 were issued without conducting the procedure contemplated by Section 148A. The decisive question was whether that omission vitiated the notices. The facts showed that the Department had initiated requisition proceedings under Section 132A in relation to cash seized by the police, and the subsequent application under Section 451 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 did not displace the earlier requisition attempt. The Court held that once the case fell within the ambit of Section 132A, the first proviso to Section 148A excluded the requirement of pre-notice inquiry and opportunity.

Conclusion: The notices under Section 148 were not invalid for want of compliance with Section 148A, since the case was covered by the first proviso to Section 148A by reason of the proceedings under Section 132A.

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