TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (6) TMI 1387
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....nated from the order of the Assessment Unit Income Tax Department (for brevity the 'Ld. AO') order passed under section 147 r.w.s. 144B of the Act date of order 13.01.2025. 2. The assessee has taken the additional grounds which are as below: "The following may kindly be admitted as additional grounds: - 3. That, the proceeding initiated by ld.AO u/s 148 are illegal, invalid, without jurisdiction, void-ab-initio, non est, barred by limitation. 4. That, the reopening of assessment beyond three years is bad in law, as the conditions prescribed under section 149(1)(b) have not been satisfied. 5. That, the approval was taken from Pr. CIT instead of Pr. CCIT/CCIT as mandated under section 151 in case notice ....
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....ng further aggrieved, the assessee has preferred the present appeal before us. 4. The Ld. AR advanced his submissions and filed a paper book comprising pages 1 to 68, which has been taken on record. The Ld. AR also raised an additional ground and relied upon the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of National Thermal Power Company Ltd. v. CIT, reported in 229 ITR 338 (SC), wherein it was held that a pure question of law arising from facts already available on record can be raised for the first time before the appellate authority. The Ld. AR primarily addressed his arguments on the additional ground and contended that a search and seizure action under section 132 of the Act was conducted in the case of RSP(S). Based on the i....
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....alf, as to why a notice under section 148 should not be issued on the basis of information which suggests that income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment in his case for the relevant assessment year and results of enquiry conducted, if any, as per clause (a); (c) consider the reply of assessee furnished, if any, in response to the show-cause notice referred to in clause (b); (d) decide, on the basis of material available on record including reply of the assessee, whether or not it is a fit case to issue a notice under section 148, by passing an order, with the prior approval of specified authority, within one month from the end of the month in which the reply referred to in clause (c) is received by him, or where no s....
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....hority means the specified authority referred to in section 151.]" [Emphasis Supplied] 5. The Ld. AR further argued that the Ld.AO had wrongly assumed jurisdiction by issuing a notice under section 148A of the Act, despite the fact that such a course of action was not permissible in view of the provisions governing reassessment proceedings arising from a search conducted under section 132. It was contended that once the case allegedly emanated from information obtained during a search, the issuance of a notice under section 148A was itself without jurisdiction and contrary to law. The Ld. AR therefore submitted that the subsequent notice issued under section 148 of the Act on 19.05.2023 was invalid and barred by limitation for A....
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.... a donation made to RSP(S). The Ld. DR submitted that the issuance of notice under section 148A was in conformity with the statutory procedure and, in fact, provided an additional opportunity of hearing to the assessee. Merely because the information had its genesis in a search conducted in the case of a third party would not render the proceedings invalid. It was further argued that the Ld.AO had duly considered the assessee's reply, passed an order under section 148A(d), and thereafter issued a notice under section 148 after obtaining the requisite approvals. The Ld. DR further contended that the assessee had claimed a deduction on the basis of a non-genuine donation and, therefore, income chargeable to tax had escaped assessment. Accordi....
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....onducted in the case of another person relate to the assessee. Therefore, once the revenue seeks to rely upon information emanating from a search conducted under section 132 in the case of a third party, the case falls within the exception carved out under clauses (b) and (c) of the proviso to section 148A. Consequently, the procedure prescribed under section 148A is not applicable to such cases. In the present case, however, the Ld. AO proceeded to issue a notice under section 148A(b), passed an order under section 148A(d), and thereafter issued a notice under section 148 on dated 21/04/2023. The revenue cannot derive any advantage or immunity from the proceedings initiated under section 148A of the Act when the statute itself excludes the....