Mr. S Pradeep Kumar Sekar and Mr. Shankar Suresh V. Union of India and Income Tax Officer, Ward No. 4(3)(2), Bengaluru and Prl. Commissioner of Income Tax, Bengaluru - 2 and National Faceless Assessment Centre

WP/37422/2025

AI Insights

The case involves a writ petition filed by former partners of M/s Sri Nandi Blue Metals, challenging multiple notices and orders issued by the Income Tax Department under the Income Tax Act, 1961, for the assessment year 2019-20. The petitioners argued that the notices were issued without proper jurisdiction and cited a similar case where the court had quashed such notices. The respondents defended the validity of the notices. The court, referencing the decision in the Ramachandra Reddy case, found in favor of the petitioners, quashing all contested notices and orders.

• Counselvise Citation: [] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 822307 (HC-KARNATAKA)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 12-12-2025
• 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: E I SANMATHI
• Assessee Lawyers: BHARATH V
• Keywords: Assessment Year 2019-20; Income Tax; Quashing of notice; Dissolved Partnership
• Section: 147; 148; 144; 144B; 148A(b); 148A(d)

Judgement Text

" - 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 12TH DAY OF DECEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 37422 OF 2025 (T-IT) BETWEEN: 1. MR S PRADEEP KUMAR SEKAR S/O RAMACHANDRAN SEKAR AGED ABOUT 45 YEARS, R/AT NO. 1201C, 12TH FLOOR, JUNIPER BLOCK, SALARPURIA GREENAGE APARTMENT HOSUR ROAD, BOMMANAHALLI, BENGALURU 560 068 (FORMER PARTNER OF M/S SRI NANDI BLUE METALS HAVING ITS ERSTWHILE OFFICE AT NO. 2600, SIDDIVINAYAK, GROUND FLOOR, 26TH MAIN, HSR LAYOUT, SECTOR-1, BENGALURU 560 102) 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 PARTNER OF M/S SRI NANDI BLUE METALS HAVING ITS ERSTWHILE OFFICE AT NO. 2600, SIDDIVINAYAK, GROUND FLOOR, 26TH MAIN, HSR LAYOUT, SECTOR-1, BENGALURU 560 102) …PETITIONERS (BY SRI. BHARATH KUMAR V, ADVOCATE) Printed from counselvise.com Digitally signed by SHARADAVANI B Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 AND: 1. UNION OF INDIA REPRESENTED BY ITS PRL. SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF FINANCE. 3RD FLOOR JEEVAN DEEP BUILDING, SANSAD MARG, NEW DELHI - 110001 2. INCOME TAX OFFICER, WARD NO. 4(3) (2), BENGALURU, HAVING OFFICE AT INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT, BMTC BUILDING, 80 FEET ROAD, 6TH BLOCK, NEAR KHB GAMES VILLAGE, BENGALURU - 560 095 3. PRL. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, BENGALURU - 2, HAVING OFFICE AT INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT, BMTC BUILDING, 80 FEET ROAD, 6TH BLOCK, NEAR KHB GAMES VILLAGE, BENGALURU 560 095 4. NATIONAL FACELESS ASSESSMENT CENTRE ADDITIONAL / JOINT / DEPUTY /ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX / INCOME TAX OFFICER, MINISTRY OF FINANCE, ROOM NO. 401, 2ND FLOOR, E-RAMP, JAWAHARLAL NEHRU STADIUM, NEW DELHI 110001 …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI.E I SANMATHI, ADVOCATE) THIS WP IS FILED PRAYING TO QUASH THE NOTICE DATED 27.02.2023 BEARING DIN AND NOTICE NO. ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1050156104(1) ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT NO. 2 UNDER SECTION 148A(B) OF 1961 Printed from counselvise.com - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 FOR THE INCOME TAX ACT, ASSESSMENT YEAR 2019-20, IN RESPECT OF THE M/S SRI NANDI BLUE METALS (DISSOLVED PARTNERSHIP CONCERN) (ANNEXURE A) AND ETC., THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs: i. Issue a writ order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the notice dated 27.02.2023 bearing DIN and Notice No. ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1050156104(1) issued by the respondent No.2 under Section 148A(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment Year 2019-20, in respect of the M/s Sri Nandi Blue Metals (dissolved partnership concern) (Annexure A); ii. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the notice dated 10.03.2023 bearing DIN and Notice No.ITBA?AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1050605570(1) issued by the respondent No.2 under Section 148A(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019-20 (Annexure A1); iii. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the order dated 22.03.2023 bearing DIN and Notice No.ITBA/AST/F/148A/2022- 23/1051106089(1) passed by the respondent No.2 under Section 148A(d) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment Year 2019-20, in respect of the M/s Sri Nandi Blue Metals (dissolved partnership concern) (Annexure B); iv. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the notice dated 30.03.2023 bearing DIN and Notice No.ITBA/AST/S/148-1/2022- 23/1051630447(1) issued by the respondent No.2 under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the assessment year 2019- 20, in respect of the M/s Sri Nandi Blue Metals (dissolved partnership concern) (Annexure C); v. Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of certiorari or any other appropriate writ quashing the order dated 04.03.2024 Printed from counselvise.com - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 bearing DIN No.ITBA/AST/S/147/2023-24/1061918894(1) passed by the respondent No.4 under Section 147 r/w Section 144 and 144B of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (Annexure D). vi. 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. 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 Printed from counselvise.com - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 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. (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 Printed from counselvise.com - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:53006 WP No. 37422 of 2025 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 notices and consequential orders, notices etc., at Annexures- A, A1, B, C and D dated 27.02.2023, 10.03.2023, 22.03.2023, 30.03.2023 and 04.03.2024 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 YKL/List No.: 2 Sl No.: 12 Printed from counselvise.com "