https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=445339 ITAT Delhi held that an assessment order u/s 144C was invalid where the AO issued demand and penalty notices simultaneously with the draft assessment order. The tribunal ruled that mandatory provisions of section 144C were bypassed, as the AO must first issue a draft order allowing the assessee to approach DRP before finalizing assessment. The defect was not curable under section 292B, and principles of estoppel cannot override statutory provisions. All subsequent proceedings were declared non est, with the case decided in favor of the assessee. en-us Tue, 17 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0530 Mon, 06 Nov 2023 04:32:00 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=445339 ITAT Delhi held that an assessment order u/s 144C was invalid where the AO issued demand and penalty notices simultaneously with the draft assessment order. The tribunal ruled that mandatory provisions of section 144C were bypassed, as the AO must first issue a draft order allowing the assessee to approach DRP before finalizing assessment. The defect was not curable under section 292B, and principles of estoppel cannot override statutory provisions. All subsequent proceedings were declared non est, with the case decided in favor of the assessee. Case-Laws Income Tax Tue, 17 Oct 2023 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=445339