Reassessment notice to a non-existent amalgamated company is invalid; later Revenue case law cannot cure the defect.

A reassessment notice issued in the name of an amalgamated company that had already ceased to exist is invalid because a notice to a non-existent entity is vitiated from the outset. Where the assessee had informed the tax authorities of the amalgamation and the successor entity had assumed the former company's identity, the notice could not be sustained in the amalgamated name. Later case law relied on by the Revenue did not cure this foundational defect. The first appellate authority's finding was upheld and the Revenue's appeal failed.

---

---

Issues: Whether the reassessment notice issued in the name of an amalgamated and non-existent company was valid.

Analysis: The assessee had informed the tax authorities that the erstwhile company had ceased to exist after amalgamation and that the resultant entity had assumed its identity. The reassessment notice, however, was issued in the name of the non-existent amalgamated company. A notice issued to an entity that had already ceased to exist is vitiated, and the defect is not cured by the subsequent reliance on later case law supporting the Revenue.

Conclusion: The reassessment notice was invalid and the finding of the first appellate authority was upheld; the Revenue's appeal failed.

---