CREATIVE REALMART PRIVATE LIMITED Vs. LALIT KUMAR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In all these petitions issue involved is identical namely the validity of notices for reassessment issued by the assessing officers after 1/4/2021 for past assessment periods but applying the provisions under the Income Tax Act, 1961 concerning reassessment which were issued prior to 1/4/2021 before their substitution by new set of provisions under the Finance Act, 2021. This will be clear from the following data:-

(2.) Identical issue had come up for consideration before this Court in case of Sudesh Taneja Vs. Income Tax Officer (D.B. Civil Writ Petition No. 969/2022) in which the impugned notices were quashed making the following observations:-

(3.) In this context the first proviso to Sec. 149(1) provides that no notice under Sec. 148 shall be issued at any time in a case for the relevant assessment year beginning on or before 1/4/2021 if such notice 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-sec. (1) of Sec. 149 as they stood immediately before the commencement of the Finance Act, 2021. As per this proviso thus no notice under Sec. 148 would be issued for the past assessment years by resorting to the larger period of limitation prescribed in newly substituted clause (b) of Sec. 149(1). This would indicate that the notice that would be issued after 1/4/2021 would be in terms of the substituted Sec. 149(1) but without breaching the upper time limit provided in the original Sec. 149(1) which stood substituted. This aspect has also been highlighted in the memorandum explaining the proposed provisions in the Finance Bill. If according to the revenue for past period provisions of sec. 149 before amendment were applicable, this first proviso to sec. 149(1) was wholly unnecessary.