Varaha Builders V. The Income Tax Officer Ward 7(2)(5), Bangalore and National Faceless Assessment Centre and The Principal Chief Commissioner of Income Tax, Bangalore

WP/16062/2024

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The case involves Varaha Builders, a partnership firm, represented by its partner Sri Hari Babu, who filed a writ petition against the Income Tax Officer and other respondents challenging several notices and orders issued for the assessment year 2016-17 under various sections of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The petitioner contended that the notices under Section 148A(b) were not received, leading to an inability to respond, which was due to bona fide reasons and unavoidable circumstances. The respondents argued that the petition lacked merit. The court, after hearing both parties, decided to set aside the impugned notices and orders and remand the case for fresh consideration, providing the petitioner an opportunity to respond.

• Counselvise Citation: [2024] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 815835 (HC-KARNATAKA)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 21-08-2024
• Assessment Year: misc
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act, 1961
• Result in Favour of: Others
• Court: HIGH COURT
• Department Lawyers: E I SANMATHI
• Assessee Lawyers: RAVI SHANKAR V
• Keywords: Assessment Year 2016-17; Income Tax; Notices quashed; Writ of Certiorari; Reconsideration Ordered
• Section: 147; 144; 271(1)(c); 271(1)(b); 271D; 271F; 144B; 148A(b); 148A(d)

Judgement Text

" - 1 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 21ST DAY OF AUGUST, 2024 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 16062 OF 2024 (T-IT) BETWEEN: VARAHA BUILDERS A PARTNERSHIP FIRM REPRESENTED BY ITS PARTNER SRI HARI BABU NO.180, GURUDUTT LAYOUT, HOSAKEREHALLI BANGALORE- 560085. ALSO AT HARI BABU, AGED 48 YEARS, S/O KANNAIAH M V, NO. 1101, 12TH FLOOR, A BLOCK, THE INFINITY , OPP CANARA BANK, UTTARAHALLI, SUBRAMANYAPURA, BANGALORE 560061, …PETITIONER (BY SRI. RAVI SHANKAR S V., ADVOCATE) AND: 1. THE INCOME TAX OFFICER WARD 7(2)(5), BANGALORE-560095 2. NATIONAL FACELESS ASSESSMENT CENTRE, ADDITIONAL/JOINT/DEPUTY/ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX/ INCOME TAX OFFICER, INCOME TAX DEPARTMENT, MINISTRY OF Digitally signed by ANAND N Location: HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA - 2 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 FINANCE, ROOM NO. 401, 2ND FLOOR, E-RAMP, JAWAHARLAL NEHRU STADIUM, DELHI 110003 3. THE PRINCIPAL CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, THE OFFICE OF THE PRINCIPAL CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, CR BUILDING BANGALORE - 560001 …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. E.I.SANMATHI, ADVOCATE) THIS WP IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO ISSUE A WRIT OF CERTIORARI OR DIRECTION IN THE NATURE OF A WRIT OF CERTIORARI QUASHING THE NOTICE UNDER SECTION 148A(B) OF THE ACT, DATED 03/03/2023, BEARING DIN NO.ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022-23/1050354233(1) ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT NO.1 FOR THE ASSESSMENT YEAR 2016- 17 HEREIN MARKED AS ANNEXURE - A; ISSUE A WRIT OF CERTIORARI OR DIRECTION IN THE NATURE OF A WRIT OF CERTIORARI QUASHING THE NOTICE UNDER SECTION 148A(B) OF THE ACT, DATED 11/03/2023, BEARING DIN NO.ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022-23/1050641535(1), ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT NO.1 FOR THE ASSESSMENT YEAR 2016- 17 HEREIN MARKED AS ANNEXURE - A1; ISSUE A WRIT OF CERTIORARI OR DIRECTION IN THE NATURE OF A WRIT OF CERTIORARI QUASHING THE ORDER UNDER SECTION 148A(D) OF THE ACT, DATED 21/03/2023, BEARING DIN NO.ITBA/AST/F/148A/2022-23/1051050220(1) ISSUED BY THE RESPONDENT NO.1 FOR THE ASSESSMENT YEAR 2016-17 HEREIN MARKED AS ANNEXURE - A2. THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR ORDERS, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR - 3 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks the following reliefs: \"i) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the notice under Section 148A(b) of the Act, dated 03/03/2023, bearing No.ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022- 23/1050354233(1) issued by the Respondent No.1 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A. ii) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the notice under section 148A(b) of the Act, dated 11/03/2023, bearing No.ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022-23/1050641535(1), issued by the Respondent No.1 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A1. iii) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the order under Section 148A(d) of the Act, dated 21/03/2023, bearing DIN No.ITBA/AST/F/148A/2022- 23/1051050220(1) issued by the Respondent No.1 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A2. v) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the notice under Section 148 of the Act dated 21/03/2023 bearing DIN - 4 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 No. ITBA/AST/S/148_1/2022-23/1051053479(1) issued by the Respondent No.1 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - АЗ. v) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the order passed Under section 147 r.w.s 144, 144B dated 24/01/2024 bearing DIN No.ITBA/AST/S/147/2023- 24/1060049641(1) issued by the Respondent No. 2 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A4. vi) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the penalty notice under Section 271(1)(c) of the Act dated 24/01/2024 bearing DIN No. ITBA/PNL/S/271(1)(c)/2023- 24/1060049842(1), issued by the Respondent No.2 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A5. vii) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the penalty order under Section 271D of the Act dated 24/01/2024 bearing DIN No. ITBA/PNL/S/271D/2023-24/1060049848(1), issued by the Respondent No.2 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A6. viii) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the penalty notice under Section 271(1)(b) of the Act dated 24/01/2024 bearing DIN No. ITBA/PNL/F/271(1)(b)/2023- - 5 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 24/1060049857(1), issued by the Respondent No.2 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A7. ix) Issue a writ of Certiorari or direction in the nature of a writ of certiorari quashing the penalty order under Section 271F of the Act dated 24/01/2024 bearing DIN No. ITBA/PNL/S/271F/2023-24/1060050256(1), issued by the Respondent No.2 for the assessment year 2016-17 herein marked as Annexure - A8.\" 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 submits that notices issued by the respondents under Section 148A(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short, ‘IT Act’), dated 03.03.2023 and 11.03.2023 [Annexures - A and A1] were not received by the petitioner and it was not aware of the notices and consequently, the petitioner could not submit its reply/response along with documents to the said notices. It is submitted that the inability and omission on the part of the petitioner to submit reply/response along with documents to the Section 148A(b) notices was due to bonafide - 6 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 reasons, unavoidable circumstances and sufficient cause and as such, if one more opportunity is provided to the petitioner to do so by setting aside the impugned orders and notices, the petitioner would do so and the respondents may be directed to proceed further in accordance with law. 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. A perusal of the impugned order will indicate that it is an undisputed fact that petitioner has not submitted reply/response along with documents to Section 148A(b) notices. Under these circumstances, in view of the specific assertion on the part of the petitioner that its inability and omission to submit a reply along with documents to Section 148A(b) notices was due to bonafide reasons, unavoidable circumstances and sufficient cause and if one more opportunity is granted, the petitioner would submit reply along with documents, I deem it just and appropriate to set aside the impugned order at Annexure – A2 dated 21.03.2023 passed under Section 148A(d) of the IT Act and subsequent notice/orders, - 7 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 etc., and remit the matter back to respondent No.1 for reconsideration afresh from the stage of submitting of reply by the petitioner to Section 148A(b) notices and to proceed further in accordance with law. 6. In the result, I pass the following: ORDER (i) The petition is hereby allowed. (ii) Impugned notices/orders at Annexures - A, A1, A2, A3, A4, A5 and A6, A7 and A8 are hereby set aside. (iii) Matter is remitted back to respondent No.1 for reconsideration afresh in accordance with law from the stage of submitting of reply to the Show Cause Notices under Section 148A(b) of the IT Act at Annexures – A dated 03.03.2023 and A1 dated 11.03.2023. (iv) Liberty is reserved in favour of the petitioner to submit additional pleadings, documents, etc., to the - 8 - NC: 2024:KHC:33600 WP No. 16062 of 2024 respondent No.1, who shall consider the same and proceed further in accordance with law. Sd/- (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE RB "