Legal Challenge: Tax Officer Must Issue Draft Order Before Final Assessment Under Section 144C, Protecting Taxpayer's Right to Representation

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....HC held that under Section 144C of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the Assessing Officer (AO) is mandatorily required to forward a draft assessment order to an eligible assessee when proposing variations prejudicial to the assessee's interests. In this case, the AO erroneously passed a final assessment order under Section 143(3) without following the prescribed procedure of issuing a draft order and providing an opportunity for representation. Consequently, the court remanded the matter, directing the AO to comply with Section 144C's procedural requirements, specifically forwarding a draft assessment order to the eligible assessee before finalizing the assessment, thereby ensuring procedural fairness and adherence to statutory provisions.....