TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (5) TMI 708
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....the same assessment years. 2. Brief facts of the case are that the assessee is engaged in the business of manufacturing Indian Made Foreign Liquor. A search u/s 132 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter called 'the Act') was conducted in the case of the assessee on 15.02.2011. Notices u/s 153A of the Act were issued on 3.12.2012 for all the captioned five assessment years. Earlier, the assessee company had amalgamated with its holding company Pernod Ricard India Private Limited w.e.f. 1.4.2009. These assessments under appeal were framed consequent to the search conducted in the case of the assessee. 3. The assessee has raised a legal ground in all the five appeals under consideration that without prejudice to other grounds of a....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....f a company which was no longer in existence. The Ld. AR further submitted that the assessments u/s 153A had been framed on a company which had amalgamated and, therefore, even though the company participated in the assessment proceedings, the assessments were invalid. 5. In response, the Ld. CIT DR vehemently argued that the notices u/s 153A were valid. It was submitted that the order of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court, dated 8.10.2010, approving the amalgamation was effective from assessment year 2010-11 only and, therefore, till assessment year 2009-10, the two companies had separate existence and, therefore, two separate assessments were required to be made for each assessment year till assessment year 2009-10. Ld. CIT DR also submitted t....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ons of the order of the Hon'ble High Court are contained in Para 11 and 18 which are being reproduced herein under for a ready reference:- "11. After the sanction of the scheme on 11th April, 2004, the Spice ceases to exist w.e.f. 1st July, 2003. Even if Spice had filed the returns, it became incumbent upon the income tax authorities to substitute the successor in place of the said dead person. When notice under Section 143(2) was sent, the appellant/amalgamated company appeared and brought this fact to the knowledge of the AO. He, however, did not substitute the name of the appellant on record. Instead, the Assessing Officer made the assessment in the name of M/s Spice which was non existing entity on that day. In such proceedings an ass....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... of the judgment of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court in the case of Spice Entertainment (supra), we are unable to persuade ourselves to agree with the contentions raised by the department and we hold that the assessment orders passed in the name of the assessee i.e. M/s Seagram Distilleries Pvt. Ltd. for all the five assessment years are void as when these assessments were made, the assessee was a non-existing entity. Thus, on the facts and the circumstances of the case, we have no hesitation in holding that the framing of assessments against a non- existing entity/person goes to the very root of the matter and is a jurisdictional defect as there cannot be any assessment against a 'dead person'. Accordingly, the impugned assessments are....