TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2023 (3) TMI 864
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....cate For Respondents No.2 to 5 : Mr. Ajay Kumrani, Advocate on behalf of Mr. Amit Choudhari, Advocate Order on Board 1. The challenge in the present writ petition is to the notice dated 19.07.2022 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 as also to the notice issued under Section 148A(d) dated 15.07.2022 (Annexure P/3 collectively). 2. The primary challenge to the said notice was the non-supply of the necessary information and the material documents on the basis of which the notices under Section 148 and the notice under Section 148A(d) has been issued. The specific contention raised by the counsel for the petitioner was that after the notice under Section 148A(b) was received by the petitioner on 26.05.2022, the petition....
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....en drawn against him by the department for prosecuting. Learned counsel for the petitioner referred to the recent decision of the Delhi High Court in WPC No. 12505/2022 (Mahashian Di Hatti Pvt. Limited v. Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax) decided on 01.09.2022 on almost similar set of facts. 5. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondents opposing the petition submits that the petitioner was served with the notice Annexure P/1 under Section 148(b) on 26.05.2022 and the petitioner has without any objection submitted his reply on 06.06.2022, however in the said reply he had not raised these grounds nor had he made any claim for providing of these informations and documents. It was also the contention of the department that the plain read....
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.... effective opportunity to file a response/reply. The non-sharing of the information is violative of the rationale behind the judgment of this Court in Sabh Infrastructure Ltd. vs. Asst. CIT, MANU/DE/2989/2017 : 398 ITR 198 (Del)." 7. Consequently, as the show cause notice issued under Section 148A(b) of the Act as well as the subsequent notice dated 18th May, 2022 are bereft of any details, this Court is of the view that the Revenue by asking the Petitioner-Assessee to respond to the aforesaid vague show cause notice was virtually asking the Petitioner to search for 'a needle in a haystack'. 8. However, as learned counsel for the Respondent- Revenue now states that the Respondent shall supply all the relevant material document....
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....en collected and relied by the department, but have not been made available to the petitioner. 8. What is also necessary to be appreciated is the fact that the judgment of the Delhi High Court referred to in the preceding paragraph is based upon another recent decision of the Delhi High Court reported in 2022 SCC OnLine Del 1461 (Divya Capital One Private Limited v. ACIT & Ors.). Both these orders were further taking into reliance the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of "Union of India & others v. Ashish Agrawal" 2022 SCC OnLine SC 543, wherein the Hon'ble Supreme Court dealing with a similar issue in paragraphs No. 23 & 27 has held as under: "23. However, at the same time, the judgments of the several High Court....
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....roceedings as per the substituted provisions of sections 147 to 151 of the IT Act as per the Finance Act, 2021, subject to compliance of all the procedural requirements and the defences, which may be available to the assessee under the substituted provisions of sections 147 to 151 of the IT Act and which may be available under the Finance Act, 2021 and in law. Therefore, we propose to modify the judgments and orders passed by the respective High Courts as under: (i) The respective impugned section 148 notices issued to the respective assessees shall be deemed to have been issued under section 148A of the IT Act as substituted by the Finance Act, 2021 and treated to be show cause notices in terms of section 148A(b). The respective assessi....
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....ter 01.04.2021 issued under section 148 of the Act are set aside and shall be governed by the present order and shall stand modified to the aforesaid extent. The present order is passed in exercise of powers under Article 142 of the Constitution of India so as to avoid any further appeals by the Revenue on the very issue by challenging similar judgments and orders, with a view not to burden this Court with approximately 9000 appeals. We also observe that present order shall also govern the pending writ petitions, pending before various High Courts in which similar notices under Section 148 of the Act issued after 01.04.2021 are under challenge." 9. Keeping in view the aforesaid authoritative decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court as al....