Mandatory section 143(2) notice after a return under section 148 is jurisdictional; omission renders reassessment void ab initio.

A return filed in response to a notice under section 148 is treated as a return on record, and issuance of notice under section 143(2) becomes a mandatory jurisdictional requirement before completing reassessment. Omission of that notice is not a curable defect and goes to the root of the authority to reassess. Applying this settled position, the reassessment framed without issuing the statutory notice could not be sustained and was held void ab initio.

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Issues: Whether reassessment completed after filing of return in response to notice under section 148 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, without issuance of notice under section 143(2), is valid in law.

Analysis: The return filed in response to the reopening notice was treated as a return on record. Once such a return is filed, notice under section 143(2) is mandatory before completing assessment or reassessment. The omission is not a curable defect and goes to the root of the jurisdiction to complete the reassessment. Applying the settled legal position, the reassessment framed without issuing the statutory notice could not be sustained.

Conclusion: The reassessment was bad in law and void ab initio and was quashed.

Ratio Decidendi: Once a return is filed in response to notice under section 148, issuance of notice under section 143(2) is a mandatory jurisdictional requirement, and its omission renders the reassessment invalid and non-curable.

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