Mr. Pradeep Kumar Shekar and Mr. Shankar Suresh V. Union of India and Prl. Commissioner of Income Tax Bangalore 1 and Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax and National Faceless Assessment Centre

WP/36331/2025

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The case involves a writ petition filed by Mr. Pradeep Kumar Shekar and Mr. Shankar Suresh, former directors of M/s Sri Nandi Green Solar Pvt. Ltd., challenging notices and orders issued by the Income Tax Department under the Income Tax Act, 1961. The petitioners sought to quash these notices and orders, which were related to the assessment year 2019-20. The High Court referenced a previous decision (Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax) where similar notices were quashed, leading to the decision in favor of the petitioners. The court allowed the petition, quashing all related notices and orders, and reserved liberty for the respondents to seek revival of the petition following the outcome of related matters pending before the Supreme Court.

• Counselvise Citation: [2025] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 821555 (HC-KARNATAKA)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 02-12-2025
• Assessment Year: misc
• Other Referred Cases: Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act, 1961
• Result in Favour of: Others
• Court: HIGH COURT
• Department Lawyers: M DILIP
• Assessee Lawyers: BHARATH V
• Keywords: Assessment Year 2019-20; Faceless assessment; Income Tax; Quashing of notice; Writ petition
• Section: 147; 148; 144; 148A(b); 148A(d); 226; 227

Judgement Text

" - 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 2ND DAY OF DECEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 36331 OF 2025 (T-IT) BETWEEN: 1. MR. PRADEEP KUMAR SHEKAR S/O LATE MR. SHEKAR AGE ABOUT 52 YEARS R/A C501 SALARPURIA SERENITI 5THMAINHSR LAYOUT SECTOR 7, BENGALURU 560102 (FORMER DIRECTOR, M/S SRI NANDI GREEN SOLAR PVT LTD STRUCK OFF FROM THE REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES W.E.F. 16-10-2019) 2. MR. SHANKAR SURESH, S/O SRI H SHANKAR SHASTRI, AGED ABOUT 51 YEARS, R/O NO. 33, 22ND MAIN, PADMANABHA NAGAR, BSK II STAGE, BENGALURU 560 070. (FORMER DIRECTOR, M/S SRI NANDI GREEN SOLAR PVT. LTD., STRUCK-OFF FROM THE REGISTRAR OF COMPANIES W.E.F., 16.10.2019) …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. BHARATH KUMAR V.,ADVOCATE) AND: 1. UNION OF INDIA REPRESENTED BY ITS PRL. SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF FINANCE. 3RD FLOOR JEEVAN DEEP BUILDING, SANSAD MARG, NEW DELHI- 110001 Printed from counselvise.com Digitally signed by JAI JYOTHI J Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 2. PRL. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX BANGALORE 1 HAVING OFFICE AT BMTC BUILDING, 80 FEET ROAD, NEAR KHB GAMES VILLAGE, KORAMANGALA, BENGALURU 560 095 3. DEPUTY COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX DC/ACIT, CIRCLE-6(1)(1), BLR HAVING OFFICE AT BMTC BUILDING, 80 FEET ROAD, NEAR KHB GAMES VILLAGE, KORAMANGALA, BENGALURU 560 095 4. NATIONAL FACELESS ASSESSMENT CENTRE ADDITIONAL / JOINT / DEPUTY /ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX /INCOME TAX OFFICER, MINISTRY OF FINANCE. 3RD FLOOR JEEVANDEEP BUILDING, SANSAD MARG, NEW DELHI 110001 …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. M.DILIP., ADVOCATE) THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE NOTICE DATED 28.01.2023 BEARING DIN AND NOTICE NO. ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1049205734(1) ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT NO. 3 UNDER SECTION 148A(b) OF THE INCOME TAX ACT, 1961 FOR THE ASSESSMENT YEAR 2019-20 IN RESPECT OF M/S SRI NANDI GREEN SOLAR PVT. LTD., (ANNEXURE -A)., AND ETC. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: Printed from counselvise.com - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs: \"WHEREFORE, it is prayed that this Hon'ble Court may be pleased to: a. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the notice dated 28.01.2023 bearing DIN and Notice No. ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1049205734(1) issued by the Respondent No. 3 under section 148A(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019-20 in respect of m/s sri nandi green solar pvt. Ltd., (Annexure -A)., b. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the order dated 13.03.2023 bearing DIN & Notice No. ITBA/AST/F/148A/2023-24/1050674188(1) passed by the Respondent No. 3 under Section 148A(d) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019-20 in respect of M/s Sri Nandi Green Solar Pvt. Ltd., (Annexure B); c. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the notice dated 13.03.2023 bearing DIN & Notice No. ITBA/AST/S/148_1/2022-23/1050674505(1) passed by the Respondent No. 3 under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019-20 in respect of M/s Sri Nandi Green Solar Pvt. Ltd., (Annexure C); d. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the order dated 07.03.2024 bearing DIN and Order No. ITBA/AST/S/147/2023-24/1062168648(1) Printed from counselvise.com - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 passed by the Respondent No. 4 under Section 147 R/w Section 144 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019-20 in respect of M/s Sri Nandi Green Solar Pvt. Ltd., (Annexure D); e. Grant such other relief that this Hon'ble Court may deem fit in the facts of the present matter.\" 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. Printed from counselvise.com - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 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 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. Printed from counselvise.com - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 (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). 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 show cause notices and consequential orders, notices etc., at Annexures- A B, C and D dated 28.01.2023, 13.03.2023, Printed from counselvise.com - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:50460 WP No. 36331 of 2025 13.03.2023 and 07.03.2024 respectively 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 BSV List No.: 2 Sl No.: 13 Printed from counselvise.com "