2025 (9) TMI 1509

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....h June 2024 passed under Section 147 read with Section 144B and the Notice of Demand dated 28th June 2024 issued under Section 156 of the I. T. Act. Additionally, the Notice of Penalty under Section 274 read with Section 271 (1) (c) of the I. T. Act is also challenged. 3. One of the grounds in the aforesaid challenge is that the Notice issued under Section 148, is issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer, when the law mandates that it has to be issued by the Faceless Assessing Officer. This, according to the Petitioner, is a fatal defect and therefore, the Notice issued under Section 148 has to be quashed. If the said Notice is quashed, then, all actions emanating therefrom, would also have to go, is the submission of the Petitione....

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....resh Assessment Order dated 28th June 2024 which is assailed in the present Writ Petition. In these facts and circumstances, Mr. Mohanty submitted that the Petitioner is now precluded from challenging the Notice issued under Section 148 on any ground whatsoever. Consequently he submitted that the above Writ Petition be dismissed with costs. 6. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties. We have also perused the papers and proceedings in the above Writ Petition. It is not in dispute that in the facts of the present case, the Notice issued under Section 148 of the I.T. Act is issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer. In the case of Hexaware Technologies Ltd. (supra), this Court has categorically held that any Notice under Sect....

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....wer by statutory authorities inconsistent with a statutory prescription is invalid. A statutory authority may lack jurisdiction if it does not fulfill the preliminary conditions laid down under the statute, which are necessary to exercise its jurisdiction. There cannot be any waiver of a statutory requirement or provision that goes to the root of the jurisdiction of assessment. An order passed without jurisdiction is a nullity and any consequential order passed or action taken will also be invalid and without jurisdiction. The relevant portion in the case of Rajeev Bansal (supra) setting out the aforesaid propositions read thus:- "30. If a statute expressly confers a power or imposes a duty on a particular authority, then such powe....

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....al Rajpal v. S P Choliha, [1971] 79 ITR 603 (SC), a three-Judge Bench of this Court held that Section 151 must be strictly adhered to because it contains "important safeguards." Chhugamal Rajpal (Supra). 32. A statutory authority may lack jurisdiction if it does not fulfil the preliminary conditions laid down under the statute, which are necessary to the exercise of its jurisdiction Chhotobhai Jethabhai Patel and Co. v. Industrial Court, Maharashtra, [1972] 2 SCC 46. There cannot be any waiver of a statutory requirement or provision that goes to the root of the jurisdiction of assessment Superintendent of Taxes (supra). An order passed without jurisdiction is a nullity. Any consequential order passed or action taken will also be in....

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....d to this request. However, the facts of the present case are peculiarly different. In the present case, the challenge to the Section 148 Notice was originally given up by the Petitioner, when it filed its earlier Petition, namely, Writ Petition (L) No.12043 of 2024. Though we are of the opinion that notwithstanding the aforesaid, the petitioner could lay a challenge to the Notice issued under Section 148 on the limited ground that the Assessing Officer inherently lacked jurisdiction to issue the said notice, whether the Petitioner can challenge the said Notice on various other grounds, at least prima facie, is doubtful. In these circumstances we are of the view that rather than allowing the Writ Petition, it would be in the interest of all....