Income-tax Officer, Ward - 1, Latur V. M/s. Agrawal Builders and Developers, Latur

ITA 1685/PUN/2019

AI Insights

The case involves an appeal by the Income Tax Officer, Ward-1, Latur against M/s. Agrawal Builders & Developers concerning the assessment year 2012-13. The appeal was directed against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals)-2, Aurangabad, which had accepted the assessee's income as nil following a scrutiny assessment under section 143(3) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The primary legal issue was the correctness of the proceedings under sections 148 and 147, which the Tribunal found to be improperly initiated as the reopening notice was issued beyond the permissible period and lacked sufficient justification.

• Counselvise Citation: [2022] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 135566 (ITAT-PUNE)
• Duration Of Justice: 13 year(s) 3 month(s) 2 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 06-12-2022
• Appeal Filed By: Department
• Order Result: Dismissed
• Bench Allotted: A
• Next Hearing Date: 29-11-2022
• Assessment Year: misc
• Appeal Filed On: 03-09-2009
• Other Referred Cases: Hindustan Lever Ltd. Vs. R.B. Wadkar 268 ITR 332 (Bom.)
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act, 1961
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Section: 148; 143(3)

Judgement Text

आयकर अपीलीय अिधकरण“ए” ायपीठ पुणे म । IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL “A” BENCH, PUNE BEFORE SHRI S.S.GODARA, JUDICIAL MEMBER AND G.D.PADMAHSHALI, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER आयकरअपीलसं . / ITA No.1685/PUN/2019 िनधा रणवष / Assessment Year: 2012-13 Income Tax Officer, Ward-1, Latur Vs M/s. Agrawal Builders & Developers, Swati Chambers, 2 nd floor, Opp. Jilla Krida Sankul Ausa Road, Latur – 413 512 Maharashtra PAN :AARFA5134E Appellant/ Assessee Respondent /Revenue Assessee by None Revenue by Shri Ramnath P. Murkunde – DR Date of hearing 30-11-2022 Date of pronouncement 07-12-2022 आदेश / ORDER Per S.S.Godara, JM: This Revenue’s appeal for A.Y.2012-13 is directed against the Commissioner of Income Tax(Appeals)-2, Aurangabad’s order dated 09.08.2019in Case No.ABD/CIT(A)-2/212/2018-19 in proceedings u/s.143(3) r.w.s.147 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, in short “the Act”. Case called twice. None appears at the assessee’s behest. It is accordingly proceeded ex parte. 2. It emerges at the outset with the able assistance coming from the Revenue side that there is hardly any need for us to delve deeper in the ITA No.1685/PUN/2019 M/s. Agrawal Builders & Developers 2 relevant factual matrix sofar as the first and foremost legal issue of correctness of section 148/147 proceedings herein is concerned. 3. Suffice to say, it emerges during the course of hearing that the Assessing Officer had framed section 143(3) scrutiny assessment herein dated 07.01.2015 order accepted the respondent/assessee’s income as Nil. These facts duly emanate from a perusal of section 143(3) r.w.s. 147 order before us dated 14-12-2018. The Assessing Officer thereafter formed his reasons to believe on the basis of the alleged tangible material that the assessee’s taxable income liable to be assessed had escaped assessment. He thus issued section 148 notice dated 31-03- 2018 very well beyond the specified period of four years from the end of the relevant assessment year 2012-13 u/s. 147 – proviso. We invited Mr. Murkunde’s attention to the said re-opening reasons wherein there is not even an allegation on the Assessing Officer’s part that the assessee had not disclosed “fully” and “truly” all the relevant particulars. That being the case, we quote hon’ble jurisdictional high court’s landmark decision in Hindustan Lever Ltd. Vs. R.B. Wadkar 268 ITR 332 (Bom.) that such a failure on the Assessing Officer’s part indeed vitiates the entire proceedings as the re-opening reasons have to be read on stand- alone basis without any scope of improvement at a later stage. We accordingly decide the instant legal issue in assessee’s favour and ITA No.1685/PUN/2019 M/s. Agrawal Builders & Developers 3 against the department to quash the impugned reopening itself. Ordered accordingly. 4. All other pleadings stand rendered academic. 5. This Revenue’s appeal is dismissed in above terms. Order pronounced in the open Court on 07 th December, 2022. Sd/- Sd/- (G.D.PADMAHSHALI) (S S GODARA) ACCOUNTANT MEMBER JUDICIAL MEMBER पुणे / Pune; दनांक / Dated : 07 th December, 2022 Satish आदेशक ितिलिपअ ेिषत / Copy of the Order forwarded to : 1. अपीलाथ / The Appellant. 2. यथ / The Respondent. 3. The CIT(A) concerned. 4. The Pr. CITconcerned. 5. िवभागीय ितिनिध,आयकरअपीलीयअिधकरण, “ ए” ब च, पुणे / DR, ITAT, “A” Bench, Pune. 6. गाड फ़ाइल / Guard File. आदेशानुसार / BY ORDER, // TRUE COPY // Senior Private Secretary आयकरअपीलीयअिधकरण, पुणे/ITAT,Pune. ITA No.1685/PUN/2019 M/s. Agrawal Builders & Developers 4 S.No Details Date Initials Designation 1 Draft dictated on 30.11.2022 Sr. PS/PS 2 Draft placed before author 06.12.2022 Sr. PS/PS 3 Draft proposed & placed before the Second Member JM/AM 4 Draft discussed/approved by Second Member AM/AM 5 Approved Draft comes to the Sr. PS/PS Sr. PS/PS 6 Kept for pronouncement on Sr. PS/PS 7 Date of uploading of Order Sr. PS/PS 8 File sent to Bench Clerk Sr. PS/PS 9 Date on which the file goes to the Head Clerk 10 Date on which file goes to the A.R. 11 Date of Dispatch of order