Limitation under Section 73 cannot be revived by later notification once the assessment time has already expired.

A demand order and show cause notice issued under Section 73 for assessment year 2017-18 were held time-barred because the order under Section 73(9) had to be passed within three years from the extended due date for furnishing the annual return under Section 44(1). As that due date stood extended to 05.02.2020, limitation expired on 05.02.2023. A later notification dated 24.04.2023 could not retrospectively revive a limitation period that had already expired, so the impugned proceedings were without jurisdiction and were quashed.

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Issues: Whether the demand order and show cause notice issued under Section 73 for the assessment year 2017-18 were barred by limitation and without jurisdiction.

Analysis: The petition was decided by applying the earlier binding view that, for financial year 2017-18, the order under Section 73(9) had to be passed within three years from the due date for furnishing the annual return under Section 44(1). The due date stood extended to 05.02.2020, so the limitation expired on 05.02.2023. The subsequent notification dated 24.04.2023 could not revive a limitation period that had already expired before its retrospective operation from 31.03.2023.

Conclusion: The impugned demand order and show cause notice were time-barred and jurisdiction; the petition was allowed and the impugned proceedings were quashed.

Final Conclusion: Proceedings initiated after expiry of the limitation period under Section 73 for financial year 2017-18 could not be sustained, and the petitioner was entitled to relief.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the limitation period for passing an order under Section 73 has already expired, a later notification cannot retrospectively revive the time to make the assessment order operative against the assessee.

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