Mr. Annam Lakshminarayana Sundarraj V. Assessment Unit National Faceless Assessment Centre and Commissioner of Income-Tax (Appeals) National Faceless Appeal Centre and Income Tax Officer Ward 2(2)(1), Bangalore and Principal Commissioner of Income Tax Bengaluru-II

WP/34718/2025

AI Insights

The case involves Mr. Annam Lakshminarayana Sundarraj, the petitioner, who challenged various orders and notices issued by the Income Tax Department under different sections of the Income-Tax Act, 1961, for the assessment year 2018-19. The petitioner sought to quash these documents on grounds that were supported by a previous judgment in a similar case (Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax). The respondents, representing the Income Tax Department, argued against the merits of the petition. The court, referencing the earlier decision, found in favor of the petitioner, leading to the quashing of all contested documents.

• Counselvise Citation: [2025] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 822419 (HC-KARNATAKA)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 08-12-2025
• Assessment Year: misc
• Other Referred Cases: Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025
• Laws Referred To: Income-Tax Act, 1961
• Result in Favour of: Others
• Court: HIGH COURT
• Department Lawyers: E I SANMATHI
• Assessee Lawyers: SANDEEP HUILGOL
• Keywords: Assessment year 2018-19; Faceless assessment; Income Tax; Legal Precedent; Quashing of notice
• Section: 148; 250; 148A(d); 226

Judgement Text

" - 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 8TH DAY OF DECEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 34718 OF 2025 (T-IT) BETWEEN: 1. MR ANNAM LAKSHMINARAYANA SUNDARRAJ S/O A LAKSHMI NARAYANA SETTY, AGED ABOUT 62 YEARS, R/AT C-302, SANDHYA NIWAS APARTMENT NO. 281/9, 9TH MAIN, 34TH CROSS, JAYANAGAR, 4TH BLOCK, JAYANAGAR III BLOCK S.O., BANGALORE - 560011 ALSO AT- NO.13, 1ST MAIN ROAD, KALAPPA BLOCK, SRIRAMPURAM, BANGALORE - 560021 ALSO AT- FLAT NO. 2 AND 3, COMFORT CASTLE, KANAKAPURA ROAD, BASAVANAGUDI, BANGALORE - 560004 …PETITIONER (BY SRI. SANDEEP HUILGOL, ADVOCATE) AND: 1. ASSESSMENT UNIT NATIONAL FACELESS ASSESSMENT CENTRE, Printed from counselvise.com Digitally signed by SHARADAVANI B Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT, 2ND FLOOR, JAWAHARLAL NEHRU STADIUM, NEW DELHI - 110003 2. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME-TAX (APPEALS) NATIONAL FACELESS APPEAL CENTRE, INCOME-TAX DEPARTMENT, ROOM NO. 245-A, NORTH BLOCK, NEW DELHI - 110001 3. INCOME TAX OFFICER WARD 2(2) (1), BANGALORE, BMTC BUILDING, 80 Q FEET ROAD, 6TH BLOCK, KORAMANGALA, BANGALORE - 590095 4. PRINCIPAL COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX BENGALURU-II, BENGALURU, C R BUILDING, NO.1, QUEENS ROAD, BANGALORE - 560001 …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. E.I. SANMATHI, ADVOCATE) THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLE 226 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASHING THE IMPUGNED APPEAL ORDER DATED 12.02.2025 BEARING DIN AND NOTICE NO. ITBA/NFAC/S/250/2024- 25/1073161991(1) ISSUED BY 2ND RESPONDENT UNDER SECTION 250 OF THE INCOME-TAX ACT, 1961 FOR ASSESSMENT YEAR 2018- 19 (ANNEXURE A) AND ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING - B GROUP, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: Printed from counselvise.com - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs: “(i) Quashing the impugned Appeal order dated 12.02.2025 bearing DIN & Notice No. ITBA/NFAC/S/250/2024-25/1073161991(1) issued by 2nd Respondent under Section 250 of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 for Assessment Year 2018-19 (Annexure 'A'); (ii) Quashing the impugned notice dated 31.03.2022 bearing DIN & Notice No. ITBA/AST/S/148_1/2021-22/1042384301(1) issued by 3rd Respondent under Section 148 of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 for Assessment Year 2018-19 (Annexure 'B'); (iii) Quashing the impugned order dated 31.03.2022 bearing no. ITBA/AST/F/148A/2021- 22/1042376204(1) passed by 3rd Respondent under Section 148A(d) of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 for Assessment Year 2018-19 (Annexure 'B-1'); (iv) Quashing the Impugned Show Cause Notice dated 06.11.2025 bearing DIN No. ITBA/AST/F/144(SCN)/202526/1082349968 (1) issued by the 1st Respondent under various relevant provisions of the Income-Tax Act, 1961 for the Assessment Year 2018-19 (Annexure 'M'); (v) Pass such other or further orders as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit in the facts and circumstances of the case, and in the interests of justice and equity.\" Printed from counselvise.com - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the respondents and perused the material on record. 3. In addition to reiterating the various contentions urged in the memorandum of petition and referring to the material on record, learned counsel for the petitioner invited my attention to the order of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025, in order to contend that the present petition deserves to be allowed and disposed of in terms of the said order. 4. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondents submits that there is no merit in the petition and that the same is liable to be dismissed. 5. As rightly contended by the learned counsel for the petitioner, the present petition is directly and squarely covered by the decision of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Printed from counselvise.com - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025, the operative portion of which reads as under: \"13. I, therefore, pass the following: O R D E R (i) The impugned show cause notices issued by the jurisdictional Assessing Officer outside the scope of Section 151-A of the Act stand obliterated. All further proceedings initiated thereto, challenged in these cases would stand quashed. (ii) Liberty is reserved to the respondents - revenue to revive all these petitions in the event the Apex Court would hold in favour of the Revenue in the pending before it. (iii) With the aforesaid liberty and to the aforesaid extent, the petitions are allowed. (iv) Contentions of both the parties except the one noted hereinabove, shall remain open to be considered in the event revival of these petitions would become necessary.\" 6. The aforesaid order is applicable to the facts and circumstances of the instant case and consequently, the present petition also deserves to be disposed of in terms of the judgment of co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Ramachandra Reddy's case supra. Printed from counselvise.com - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:51703 WP No. 34718 of 2025 7. In the result, I pass the following: ORDER (i) The petition is allowed and disposed of in terms of the decision of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025. (ii) The impugned appeal order, impugned notice, impugned order and the impugned show cause notice at Annexure - A dated 12.02.2025, Annexure - B dated 31.03.2022, Annexure - B1 dated 31.03.2022, and Annexure - M dated 06.11.2025 are hereby quashed. (iii) Liberty is reserved in favour of the respondents - Revenue to seek revival of this petition, subsequent to disposal of the matters pending before the Apex Court and all rival contentions between the parties in this regard are kept open and no opinion is expressed on the same. Sd/- (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE SJK List No.: 2 Sl No.: 124 Printed from counselvise.com "