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TMI Blog2010 (9) TMI 875X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rd together and are being disposed of by this consolidated order for the sake of convenience. ITA Nos. 1181 and 1182/Chd./2000 3. The assessee has furnished on record revised grounds of appeal but has first placed reliance on additional ground Nos. 5 to 7, which are against the preliminary issue raised in the present appeal ground Nos. 5 to 7 raised by the assessee are as under : "5. That the learned AO has gravely erred in initiating proceedings under s. 147 and then completing the reassessment proceedings, which in fact are illegal and void ab initio and contrary to law. 6. That the worthy CIT(A) has erred in sustaining the assessment made by learned AO who has erred in framing the impugned assessment without setting aside the originally returned/assessed income. 7. That the learned AO has erred in framing the impugned assessment since no notice under s. 143(2) was issued or served on the appellant." 4. The revised additional grounds raised by the assessee being legal issue are admitted for adjudication. We will first take up the additional grounds of appeal Nos. 5 to 7 raised by the assessee, which are against the preliminary issue raised in initiating the proceedings unde ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... half share. In appeal before the CIT(A), the first issue raised by the assessee was that the order passed under s. 144 of the Act was illegal on the ground that the notices under s. 148 were never served upon the assessee. The assessee also moved an application for condonation of delay in filing the appeal before the CIT(A) on the ground that the notices under ss. 148, 142(1) and the assessment order under s. 144 of the Act were never served upon the assessee as the same were served through affixture at H. No. 815, Phase 3-B-I, Mohali. The plea of the assessee was that he came to know about the said order only when the notice for pending recovery was served on the assessee at his correct address and thereafter he obtained the certified copy and filed the appeal before the CIT(A). The CIT(A) in the circumstances, condoned the delay in filing the appeal. With regard to the issue raised in ground No. 1, the CIT(A) held that the order passed under s. 144 was unjustified. Thereafter, the addition made on the merits was partly allowed by the CIT(A) and relief of Rs. 2,01,000 out of income from undisclosed sources was allowed to assessee. Similarly, addition made on account of rental inco ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... caped assessment. In view of the assessee not having filed any IT return and hence the source of the bank deposits, as per the AO, remained unexplained. The copy of the reasons recorded by the AO is placed at p. 12 of the paper book. The AO thereafter issued notice under s. 148 of the Act dt. 29th March, 2007. The said notice as per the AO was served through affixture on 30th March, 2007 at the last known address i.e. House No. 815, Phase 3-B-I, Mohali. Subsequently, notice under s. 142(1) and show-cause notice under s. 144 of the IT Act were also served on the aforesaid address. The plea of the assessee is that the said notice was served by affixture on premises which was locked by the Vigilance Department and the same could not be held to be a valid service of notice. 9. The assessee in the present case was filing its return of income on the said address i.e. H. No. 815, Phase 3-B-I, Mohali. The said return of income for the year under consideration was filed with Ward-Mohali, Chandigarh. The assessee has furnished on record the copy of acknowledgement of filing the original return of income, the revised return filed by the assessee and the intimation issued under s. 143(1) of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... argued at the outset by the learned Authorised Representative for the assessee. The common ground No. 3 raised in all the appeals in ITA Nos. 1183 to 1185/Chd./2009 reads as under : "3. That the worthy CIT(A) has erred in not allowing the ground that the assessment initiated and finally concluded by the learned AO on a dead person is nullity." 13. The learned Authorised Representative for the assessee pointed out that the assessment in the case was sought to be reopened by issue of notice under s. 148 of the Act after recording reasons for reopening, in the case of dead person, who had expired 5 years earlier. The proceedings under s. 147 of the Act were initiated on 29th March, 2007 whereas the assessee, Smt. Balbir Kaur had expired on 27th Dec. 2001. The learned Authorised Representative pointed out that there is no merit in the reassessment proceedings being carried out against the dead person in view of the ratio laid down by the Hon'ble Punjab & Haryana High Court in CIT v. Rakesh Kumar, Mukesh Kumar [2009] 178 Taxman 224/313 ITR 305. Further, the learned Authorised Representative pointed out that the assessment order was also passed in the name of dead person and not her le ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he order of the AO under s. 158BC/144 of the Act was held to be illegal as the same was passed in the name of a dead person, consequent to a search warrant issued under s. 132 of the Act. The Hon'ble Court held the search warrant to be against the law and natural justice and no valid assessment could be made on the strength of such an invalid search warrant. Respectfully following the ratio laid down by the Hon'ble Punjab & Haryana High Court, we hold that the reassessment proceedings initiated and assessments completed in the present case on a dead person by the AO and confirmed by the CIT(A) to be void ab initio. Accordingly, we set aside the order of the CIT(A) and annul the assessment made relating to the asst. yrs. 2000-01 and 2001-02. 16. The assessee in 1TA No. 1184/Chd./2009 is aggrieved by the levy of penalty under s. 271(1)(c) of the Act pursuant to the additions made in the hands of the assessee relating to asst. yr. 2000-01. The learned Authorised Representative for the assessee also claimed the proceedings completed being null and void being concluded on a dead person. In view of our observations in paras hereinabove, we set aside the order of the CIT(A) and direct th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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