Authority: High Court of Punjab & Haryana at Chandigarh

Order Date: 22 May 2025

Case Overview

  • Petitioner: M/S Kapedome Enterprises Private Limited; Respondents: Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Central Circle 2, Chandigarh and others.
  • Petition challenged the notice dated 24 March 2025 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, alleging that the notice was issued by the jurisdictional Assessing Officer contrary to the Ministry of Finance notification dated 29 March 2022 which mandates faceless assessment for such notices.
  • Counsel for petitioner relied on two earlier High Court judgments: Jatinder Singh Bhangu v. Union of India (19 July 2024) and Jasjit Singh v. Union of India (29 July 2024), which held that Section 148 notices must be issued through the faceless system.
  • Respondents did not dispute the applicability of those precedents.

Final Outcome

  • The Court quashed the notice dated 24 March 2025 issued by the jurisdictional Assessing Officer, directing that the respondents may proceed against the petitioner only in accordance with the law, i.e., via the faceless assessment mechanism.
  • The petition was allowed in its entirety.

Topics: Tax Assessment, Faceless Assessment, Judicial Review