Authority: High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh

Order Date: 12 September 2024

Case Overview

  • Parties: Petitioner – Kanna Paper Mills Ltd.; Respondent – Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax, Circle‑1, Amritsar.
  • Case Numbers: CWP‑9299‑2023 (O&M) and related CWP‑9285‑2023 (O&M).
  • Bench: Hon'ble Mr. Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Hon'ble Mr. Justice Sanjay Vashisht.
  • Counsel: Mr. Abhinav Narang, Advocate for the petitioner; Ms. Urvashi Dhugga, Sr. Standing Counsel for the respondents/revenue.
  • Nature of Proceeding: Writ petitions challenging notices issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and subsequent proceedings, alleging lack of jurisdiction in view of the faceless assessment regime.
  • Legal References: The Court relied on its earlier judgments in Jasjit Singh vs. Union of India (No.21509 of 2023, decided 29‑07‑2024) and Jatinder Singh Bhangu vs. Union of India and others (No.15745 of 2024, decided 29‑07‑2024), as well as a coordinate bench decision dated 19‑07‑2024, which held that Assessing Officers cannot issue Section 148 notices without complying with statutory provisions and the faceless assessment provisions of Sections 144B(7 & 8) and 119‑120 of the Act.
  • Observations: The Court observed that circulars or instructions issued by the Board cannot override statutory provisions; such instructions must be confined to purposes of supplementing statutory provisions, not rendering them otiose. It emphasized that the Assessing Officer lacks competence to issue Section 148 notices without conducting faceless assessment as mandated.

Final Outcome

  • The notices dated 28‑02‑2023, 16‑03‑2023, 20‑03‑2024, 30‑03‑2023, 10‑04‑2023 and 07‑04‑2023, along with the consequential proceedings, were set aside for want of jurisdiction.
  • All writ petitions filed by Kanna Paper Mills Ltd. were allowed.
  • The interim order previously passed by the Court stands merged with the present order.
  • All pending applications in the matter were disposed of accordingly.

Topics: Tax Notice Quash, Faceless Assessment Jurisdiction