TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (6) TMI 827
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.....04.2022 for AY 2015-16 are bad in law as the same were issued in contravention to provisions of section 149 of the Act and hence the subsequent proceedings and the assessment order dated 25.11.2023 are to be held as invalid. 3. The order u/s 148A(d) dated 05.04.2022 and notice u/s 148 of the Act dated 06.04.2022 for A.Y. 2015-16 are bad in law as the same were issued in contravention to provisions of Section 151A of the Act. The Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) has no authority to pass order u/s 148A(d) and issue notice u/s 148 of the Act in contravention of judicial decisions. Hence the whole reopening proceedings and the assessment order are to be held as invalid. 4. The CIT(A) erred in not confirming that the notice u/s 148A(b) dated 24.03.2022 is bad in law as the period of minimum seven days for submitting the details was not provided in the notice thereby contravening the provisions of section 148A(b) of the Act and subsequently the order u/s 148A(d) and notice u/s 148 are bad in law. 5. The Ld. CIT(A) erred in confirming that the order u/s 148A(d) dated 05.04.2022 and notice u/s 148 of the Act dated 06.04.2022 are bad in law as the same were....
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....based on the notice issued under section 148 of the Act, dated 06/04/2022 for the AY 2015-16. 7. Admittedly, it is a matter of fact borne from record that the impugned notice under section 148 of the Act, dated 06/04/2022, has been issued beyond the time limit specified under the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 149 of the Act as it stood immediately before the commencement of the Finance Act, 2021. We say so, for the reason that, as per the pre-amended section 149(1)(b) of the Act, a notice under section 148 of the Act for the AY 2015-16 could have been issued by the AO, latest by 31/03/2022. 8. Considering the aforesaid factual position, we find substance in the Ld. AR's contention that as the notice under section 148 of the Act, dated 06/04/2022 in the present case had been issued beyond the time period specified under the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of section 149 of the Act, as was available on the statute prior to the commencement of the Finance Act, 2021, the same could not have been issued as per the clear mandate of the "first proviso" to section 149 of the Act as had been made available on the statute by the Finance Act, 2021. A....
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....ed on the decision of the Apex Court in the case of S.M. Overseas (P) Ltd., v. Commissioner of Income-tax. Learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner has distinguished the decision rendered by the High Court of Patna in Chandra Shekhar v. Principal Commissioner of Income-tax as it relates to the Assessment Year 2020-21 where the application of the first proviso to the amended Section 149 of the Act introduced with effect from 01.04.2021 cannot be applied. Based on the said submissions, the learned Senior Counsel for the petitioner has prayed that the impugned notice under Section 148 of the Act may be quashed and the order passed under Section 148A(d) of the Act may also be set aside. 8. On behalf of the Revenue, learned Senior Counsel for the Department has taken us to the chronology of dates and events as referred to hereinabove and thereby drawn the attention of this Court to the notice under Section 148A(b) of the Act dated 26.03.2024. It is submitted that the instant notice was issued prior to the expiry of six years period for reopening the assessment proceedings under the unamended Section 149 of the Act for the Assessment Year 2017-18. The order under Section 148A(d....
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....r section 148 or section 153A or section 153C could not have been issued at that time on account of being beyond the time limit specified under the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of this section or section 153A or section 153C, as the case may be, as they stood immediately before the commencement of the Finance Act, 2021: Provided also that for the purposes of computing the period of limitation as per this section, the time or extended time allowed to the assessee, as per show-cause notice issued under clause (b) of section 148A or the period during which the proceeding under section 148A is stayed by an order or injunction of any court, shall be excluded: Provided also that where immediately after the exclusion of the period referred to in the immediately preceding proviso, the period of limitation available to the Assessing Officer for passing an order under clause (d) of section 148A does not exceed seven days, such remaining period shall be extended to seven days and the period of limitation under this sub-section shall be deemed to be extended accordingly. Notice. This also ensures that the new time limit of ten years prescribed under Se....
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.... (b) if four years, but not more than six years, have elapsed from the end of the relevant assessment year unless the mome chargeable to tax which has escaped assessment amounts to or is likely to amount to one lakh rupees or more for that year. I if four years, but not more than sixteen years, have elapsed from the end of the relevant assessment year unless the income in relation to any asset (including financial interest in any entity) located outside India, chargeable to tax, has escaped assessment. Explanation In determining income chargeable to tax which has escaped assessment for the purposes of this sub-section, the provisions of Explanation 2 of section 147 shall apply as they apply for the purposes of that section (2) The provisions of sub-section (1) as to the issue of notice shall be subject to the provisions of section 151. (3) If the person on whom a notice under section 148 is to be served is a person treated as the agent of a non-resident under section 163 and the assessment, reassessment or recomputation to be made in pursuance of the notice is to be made on him as the agent of such non-resident, the notice shall not be iss....
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....this regard, it is apposite to refer to opinion of the Delhi High Court. Paragraphs 15 and 16 of Godrej Industries Ltd., (supra) are extracted hereunder: "15. The validity of a notice must be judged on the basis of the law existing as on the date on which the notice is issued under Section 148 of the Act, which in the present case is 31 July 2022, by which time the Finance Act, 2021 is already on the statute and in terms thereof, no notice under Section 148 of the Act for AY 2014-15 could be issued on or after 1" April 2021 based on the first proviso to Section 149 of the Act. Therefore, the fifth proviso cannot apply in a case where the first proviso applies because, if a notice under Section 148 of the Act could not be issued beyond the time period provided in the first proviso, then the fifth proviso could not save such notices. The fifth proviso can only apply where one has to determine whether the time limit of three years and ten years in Section 149(1) of the Act are breached. 16. The sixth proviso to Section 149 of the Act has no impact as it only provides a situation where after exclusion of the time period referred to in the fifth proviso, the time avail....
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....thin the time prescribed under first proviso to Section 149(1) of the Act, then such period cannot be extended by fifth or sixth proviso. In Hexaware Technologies Ltd. (supra), the Court had relied upon another judgment of Bombay High Court in Godrej Industries Ltd. V. Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax [2024] 160 taxmann.com 13 (Bombay)/(2024) 338 CTR (Bom) 25, which was also authored by one of us (the Chief Justice), where paragraph No.15 reads as under: "15. The validity of a notice must be judged on the basis of the law existing as on the date on which the notice is issued under Section 148 of the Act, which in the present case is 31" July 2022, by which time the Finance Act, 2021 is already on the statute and in terms thereof, no notice under Section 148 of the Act for AY 2014-15 could be issued on or after 1 April 2021 based on the first proviso to Section 149 of the Act. Therefore, the fifth proviso cannot apply in a case where the first proviso applies because, if a notice under Section 148 of the Act could not be issued beyond the time period provided in the first proviso, then the fifth proviso could not save such notices. The fifth proviso can only apply where....