PALAKA SATANARAYANA,KAKINADA V. INCOME TAX OFFICER, WARD-1, KAKINADA

MA 8/VIZ/2025

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The case involves Palaka Satyanarayana, the appellant, who sought a rectification of the Tribunal's earlier order concerning the communication of notices for set-aside proceedings. Initially, the Tribunal had directed that notices be sent to an outdated email address used by the assessee's former accountant. The assessee, in his submissions, clarified that he had updated his email address in the e-filing portal and provided a new email for all future communications. The Tribunal acknowledged the oversight and corrected the email address to ensure proper communication in the future proceedings.

• Counselvise Citation: [2025] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 714708 (ITAT-VISAKHAPATNAM)
• Appeal Type: Miscellaneous Application
• Pronouncement Date: 06-08-2025
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Allowed
• Assessment Year: 2015-2016
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Keywords: Set aside; Opportunity of being heard

Judgement Text

"आयकर अपीलीय अधिकरण, धिशाखापटणम पीठ IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL Visakhapatnam Bench, Visakhapatnam श्री रवीश सूद, माननीय न्याययक सदस्य एवं श्री मधुसूदन सावडिया, माननीय लेखा सदस्य SHRI RAVISH SOOD, HON’BLE JUDICIAL MEMBER AND SHRI MADHUSUDAN SAWDIA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER M.A.No.07/Viz/2025 & 08/Viz/2025 (Arising out of I.T.A.No.281/Viz/2024 & 282/Viz/2024) (निर्धारण वर्ा/ Assessment Year : 2014-15 & 2015-16) Palaka Satyanarayana Kakinada PAN : AYJPS1985K Vs. Income Tax Officer Ward-1 Kakinada (अपीलार्थी/ Appellant) (प्रत्यर्थी/ Respondent) करदाता का प्रतततितित्व/ Assessee Represented by : Shri P.Prabhakara Murthy, AR राजस्व का प्रतततितित्व/ Department Rep. by : Dr.Aparna Villuri, DR सुिवाई समाप्त होिे की ततति/ Date of Conclusion of Hearing : 18.07.2025 घोर्णध की तधरीख/Date of Pronouncement : 06.08.2025 O R D E R प्रनत रवीश सूद, जे.एम./PER RAVISH SOOD, J.M. The captioned miscellaneous applications filed by the assessee arises from the respective orders passed by the Tribunal in ITA No.281 & 282/Viz/2024 dated 28.03.2025. As common Printed from counselvise.com 2 MA No.7&8/Viz/2025 issues are involved in the captioned appeals, the same are taken up and disposed of by this common order. 2. The captioned appeals filed by the assessee were disposed of by the Tribunal, vide its orders passed in ITA No.281 & 282/Viz/2024, dated 28.03.2024. As the respective matters were restored by the Tribunal to the file of the Ld. CIT(A), with a direction to readjudicate the same, after affording reasonable opportunity of being heard to the assessee, therefore, it was directed that in the course of set aside proceedings, the notices intimating the fixation of the respective appeals be dropped in the email account of the assessee as provided by him in his return of income, i.e. “[e-mail]”. 3. The assessee has filed the present application, wherein it is stated by him that the e-mail address provided by him since August 2022 in his e-filing portal has been updated with primary e-mail address “[e-mail]” along with secondary email address “[e-mail]”. Elaborating further, the assessee had stated that the email address viz., “[e-mail]”, which was earlier being used Printed from counselvise.com 3 MA No.7&8/Viz/2025 by his accountant, who was looking after his returns/e-filing portal is no more being used. 4. Shri. P. Prabhakara Murthy, Advocate, the Ld.AR for the assessee, states that the assessee, in his written submissions filed with the Tribunal dated 24.02.2025 had specifically brought to its notice that the earlier email ID viz., “mnr_narasimharao @yahoo.co.in”, which was used by his accountant, who has left the services was no more being used and was substituted by new mail address “[e-mail]” that was provided in Memorandum of Appeal filed before the Ld. CIT(A) in “Form No.35”. The Ld.AR states that the Tribunal, while setting aside the matter to the file of the Ld. CIT(A) with a direction to pass a fresh order has directed that notices, intimating the fixation of appeal be dropped in the e-mail account of the assessee “[e-mail]”. The Ld. AR states that as the aforementioned email account is no more in use and the said fact was specifically brought to the notice of the Tribunal by the assessee appellant vide his written submission dated 24.02.2025, therefore, the same had rendered its order to the said extent as Printed from counselvise.com 4 MA No.7&8/Viz/2025 suffering from a mistake apparent from record, making it amenable for rectification u/s 254(2) of the Act. 5. Per contra, the Ld. DR objected to the application filed by the assessee applicant. 6. We have thoughtfully considered the contentions of the learned authorized representatives of both the parties in the backdrop of the orders passed by the Tribunal and the material available on record. 7. Admittedly, it is a matter of fact borne from record that the assessee had vide his letter dated 24.02.2025 brought to the notice of the Tribunal that his failure to participate in the proceedings before the Ld. CIT(A) was due to the reason that the notices were sent to the email address, viz., “[e-mail]”, that was used by the accountant, who had left the job, and thus the said email account was not any more accessible to him. Also, the assessee had brought it to the notice of the Tribunal that the Ld. CIT(A) had failed to drop the notices intimating the fixation of appeal at the new email ID that was provided by the assessee in Form 35, viz., “[e-mail]”. Accordingly, it Printed from counselvise.com 5 MA No.7&8/Viz/2025 is a mater of fact discernible from the record that the assessee had specifically vide his submissions filed before the Tribunal submitted that it was the email address, viz., “[e-mail]”, which was being used. 8. We thus, in terms of our aforesaid facts concur with the assessee that the observation of the Tribunal that the notices intimating the fixation of the appeal during the set aside proceedings be dropped in the email account of the assessee “[e-mail]” suffers from a mistake apparent from record, rendering it amenable for rectification u/s 254(2) of the Act. Accordingly, we herein rectify the aforesaid mistake and direct the Ld. CIT(A) to drop the notices intimating the fixation of the appeal in the course of set aside proceedings in the new email account of the assessee i.e. “[e-mail]”, which has been updated by him in his income tax portal. Accordingly, Para 12 of the order passed by the Tribunal may hereinafter be read as under: “12. Before parting, we may herein observe that the Ld.AR had stated at Bar that the dropping of the notices by the office of the CIT(A) in the course of the set-aside proceedings in his e-mail account provided in the Printed from counselvise.com 6 MA No.7&8/Viz/2025 Memorandum of Appeal in Form No.35, i.e. “[e-mail]” will be deemed as a valid service and no objection on the said aspect shall hereinafter qua the validity of service on the said count be raised by him.” 9. Resultantly, the captioned miscellaneous applications filed by the assessee are allowed in terms of our aforesaid observations. Order pronounced in the Open Court on 6th August, 2025. Sd/- Sd/- Sd/- (श्री मधुसूदन सावडिया) (MADHUSUDAN SAWDIA) लेखा सदस्य/ACCOUNTANT MEMBER Sd/- Sd/- (श्री रवीश सूद) (RAVISH SOOD) न्याधयक सदस्य/JUDICIAL MEMBER Sd/- Hyderabad, dated 06.08.2025. L.Rama/sps आदेशकी प्रनतनिनि अग्रेनर्त/ Copy of the order forwarded to:- 1. निर्धाररती/The Assessee : Palaka Satyanarayana, 2-60A-8/2, Venkat Nagar Engg. College., Kakinada (Urban) 2. रधजस्व/ The Revenue : The Income Tax Officer, Ward-1, Kakinada 3. The Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, Visakhapatnam 4. नवभधगीयप्रनतनिनर्, आयकर अिीिीय अनर्करण, / DR, ITAT, Visakhapatnam 5. गधर्ाफ़धईि / Guard file आदेशधिुसधर / BY ORDER Sr. Private Secretary ITAT, Visakhapatnam Printed from counselvise.com "