TMI Blog2018 (7) TMI 954X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s : Mr. Neelabh Dubey, Advocate. For Respondents : Mrs. Naushina Afrin Ali, Advocate. ORDER 1. Since common question of law and fact is involved in these writ petitions, they are heard together and are being disposed of by this common order. (For the sake of convenience, W.P.(T)No.327/2017 is taken as a lead case.) 2. The petitioners in this batch of writ petitions questioned the order dated 2-8-2017 passed by the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Raipur, called as a rebuttal order to the objections raised against reopening of the case under Section 147 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short, 'the IT Act') stating inter alia that the petitioners were assessed for the assessment year 2010-11 and regular assessment order was passed on 12-3-2013 and first time, they were served with notice dated 18-7-2017 under Section 142(1) of the IT Act on 21-7-2017. After receipt of notice, the petitioners moved an application pointing out defects in the re-assessment proceeding and sought reasons to believe recorded under Section 147 read with Section 148 of the IT Act. After receipt of the said application, the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax/Assessing Office ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ined in Sections 147 and 148 of the IT Act. Section 147 of the IT Act provides for income escaping assessment. Section 147 states as under: - 147. If the Assessing Officer has reason to believe that any income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment for any assessment year, he may, subject to the provisions of sections 148 to 153, assess or reassess such income and also any other income chargeable to tax which has escaped assessment and which comes to his notice subsequently in the course of the proceedings under this section, or recompute the loss or the depreciation allowance or any other allowance, as the case may be, for the assessment year concerned (hereafter in this section and in sections 148 to 153 referred to as the relevant assessment year) : Provided that where an assessment under subsection (3) of section 143 or this section has been made for the relevant assessment year, no action shall be taken under this section after the expiry of four years from the end of the relevant assessment year, unless any income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment for such assessment year by reason of the failure on the part of the assessee to make a return under section 1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... assessing officer has to dispose of the objections, if filed, by passing a speaking order, before proceeding with the assessment in respect of the abovesaid five assessment years. 10. The decision of the Supreme Court in GKN Driveshafts (India) Ltd. (supra) was considered by the Delhi High Court in the matter of Haryana Acrylic Manufacturing Company v. The Commissioner of Income Tax IV and another (2009) 308 ITR 38 and Their Lordships of the Delhi High Court held that it is mandatory for the Assessing Officer to supply reasons for reopening the assessment and this has to be done within a reasonable time. It was observed as under: - ... a notice under Section 148 without the communication of the reasons therefore is meaningless inasmuch as the Assessing Officer is bound to furnish the reasons within a reasonable time. In a case, where the notice has been issued within the said period of six years, but the reasons have not furnished within that period, in our view, any proceedings pursuant thereto would be hit by the bar of limitation inasmuch as the issuance of the notice and the communication and furnishing of reasons go hand-in-hand. The expression within a reasonable p ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... if the assessee makes a request for supply of reasons recorded under Section 147 of the IT Act after receipt of notice under Section 148 of the IT Act, the Assessing Officer is obliged to furnish reasons enabling the assessee to file objections and the Assessing Officer is, then also obliged to take decision on such objections within reasonable time by a reasoned and speaking order. 13. Reverting to the facts of the present case, it is the case of the petitioners that they have been served with notice for the first time on 21-7-2017 and they were never served with notice under Section 148 of the IT Act and therefore, they are entitled for reasons to believe recorded under Section 147 of the IT Act. On the other hand, reasons to believe as recorded under Section 147 of the IT Act were not supplied straightway to the petitioners despite request made by the petitioners, though rebuttal order contains reasons recorded in para 2 and thereafter, the learned assessing authority considering the application in great detail also came to the conclusion that the objections raised to the proceeding initiated holds no water. Their Lordships of the Supreme Court in GKN Driveshafts (India) Ltd ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
