Natural justice in assessment proceedings requires a real opportunity to reply and be heard before completion of assessment.

An assessment completed after fixing the hearing during the Covid-19 lockdown was held to have been passed without a meaningful opportunity to reply or be heard. On that factual basis, the assessment was quashed for breach of natural justice and the matter was remanded for fresh adjudication after granting the assessee an opportunity to file a reply and participate in a hearing. The rectification order did not survive once the assessment order was set aside.

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Issues: Whether the assessment order deserved to be quashed and the matter remanded for fresh adjudication on the ground that the assessee was denied an effective opportunity of reply and personal hearing before the assessment was completed.

Analysis: The show cause notice fixed the hearing for a date when the country was under lockdown because of the Covid-19 pandemic. In those circumstances, the assessee could not attend the hearing. Despite this, the assessment was completed. The assessment was therefore passed without a meaningful opportunity to meet the case against the assessee. The rectification order did not survive once the assessment order itself was set aside.

Conclusion: The assessment order was quashed and set aside for breach of the principles of natural justice, and the matter was remanded for fresh adjudication after granting an opportunity to file a reply and to be heard.

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