TMI Blog2024 (2) TMI 49X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nt Orders. HELD THAT:- The impugned orders passed by the first respondent have preceded with the notices issued by the first and the second respondents and show cause notices cum Draft Assessment Orders - It is evident that the assessment orders have been passed in a hurry to avoid lapsing of the assessment proceeding due to limitation u/s 153 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Although the respondents have given various reasons to justify the impugned order and submit that the petitioner should be relegated to work out the remedy before the Appellate Commissioner against the impugned assessment orders, it is of the view that this is a manifest violation of principles of natural justice and therefore, the impugned orders are liable to be qu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... come Tax Act, 1961 are on account of violation of principles of natural justice. 4. Assessments under Section 143(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for these two assessment years 2014-15 and 2015-16 were completed on 25.03.2016 and 28.06.2017 earlier. These assessment orders were sought to be re-opened under Section 147 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 by issuing notice under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 dated 30.03.2021 as it stood then. 5. Pursuant to the aforesaid notices under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the petitioner had uploaded the return of income on 29.04.2021 manually as the petitioner was unable to file them electronically. 6. The Impugned Assessment Orders precedes Show Cause Notices dated 26.03.2 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the petitioner was not a tech savvy person and therefore, was unable to upload the return electronically and had therefore submitted a hard copy of the return of income on 29.04.2021 with a covering letter manually in reply to notices dated 30.03.2021 under Section 148 and also uploaded the same digitally at the ASK Counter of the Income Tax Department which was acknowledged in Form ITR V and further sent to the Central Processing Unit. 11. The petitioner appears to have filed a manual return which was acknowledged by the Income Tax Department on 29.04.2021. 12. However, that the petitioner was issued with a reminder dated 23.09.2021 by the second respondent and called upon the petitioner to file a return. The second respondent h ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hat the petitioner could not immediately reply and respond to the Show Cause Notices cum Draft Assessment Orders with the help of a professional before the stipulated time. 17. It is the specific case of the petitioner that under sub-section (2) to Section 143 of the Income Tax Act, the Assessing Officer or the prescribed Income Tax Authority was required to serve a notice requiring the petitioner on a date to be specified therein either to attend the office of the Assessing Officer or to produce, or cause to be produced before such officer any evidence on which the petitioner relied upon in support of the return. 18. It is submitted that no notice under sub-section (2) to Section 143 of the Act was required to be serve only in th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rns electronically as is required under Rule 12(3)(iii) of the Income Tax Rules, 1962, read with Section 139D of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the purpose of Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and the manual return which is said to have been filed by the petitioner on 29.04.2021 cannot be accepted and therefore, the question of following the procedure under Section 143(2) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, did not arise and therefore, proceedings under Section 142(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 was started followed by a Show Cause Notices dated 26.03.2022 and the Impugned Assessment Orders both dated 30.03.2022. 22. It is further submitted that the assessment had to be completed in a time bound manner on or before 31.03.2022 as otherwise ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... orders dated 30.03.2022, I am of the view that this is a manifest violation of principles of natural justice and therefore, the impugned orders are liable to be quashed as not enough time was given to the petitioner to respond to the respective show cause notices cum Draft Assessment Orders dated 26.03.2022. 28. On this short ground alone the impugned orders are liable to be quashed and the cases are to be sent back to the first respondent to pass a fresh order by giving opportunity to the petitioner to file a reply/representation to the respective show cause notices cum Draft Assessment Orders dated 26.03.2022. 29. Since the impugned orders dated 30.03.2022 are being set aside and the cases have been remitted back, the impugned ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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