https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=457274 Section 144B confers a vested right to a reasonable personal hearing when an assessee seeks one before finalisation of an assessment with civil consequences, and the word "may" does not make that safeguard discretionary. The Court rejected the distinction that oral hearing could be denied in disputed factual matters, holding that refusal of hearing was contrary to law. The assessment order and consequential proceedings were quashed, and the matter was remanded for fresh decision after granting hearing in accordance with law. en-us Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0530 Fri, 13 Sep 2024 13:55:40 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=457274 Section 144B confers a vested right to a reasonable personal hearing when an assessee seeks one before finalisation of an assessment with civil consequences, and the word "may" does not make that safeguard discretionary. The Court rejected the distinction that oral hearing could be denied in disputed factual matters, holding that refusal of hearing was contrary to law. The assessment order and consequential proceedings were quashed, and the matter was remanded for fresh decision after granting hearing in accordance with law. Case-Laws Income Tax Thu, 21 Jul 2022 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=457274