Authority: High Court of Punjab and Haryana at Chandigarh
Order Date: 17 September 2024
Case Overview
- Petitioners: S.B. Realtech Pvt. Ltd.
- Respondent: Deputy Commissioner of Gurgaon and Income Tax Department (Central Circle‑2)
- The petition challenged notices issued under Section 148 of the Income‑Tax Act, 1961 and subsequent proceedings initiated without a faceless assessment under Section 144B.
- The Court referred to earlier judgments of the Coordinate Bench in Jasjit Singh v. Union of India (29 July 2024) and Jatinder Singh Bhangu v. Union of India (19 July 2024), reiterating that circulars or instructions cannot override statutory provisions.
Observations
- Circulars or instructions issued by the Board cannot make statutory provisions otiose or obsolete; they must supplement, not usurp, the law.
- Sections 119, 120 and 144B(7 & 8) of the Act must be strictly followed; authorities cannot bypass them to cause hardship to assessees.
- Notices dated 28‑02‑2023, 16‑03‑2023, 20‑03‑2024 and 30‑03‑2023, together with the order dated 30‑03‑2023, were issued without jurisdiction as they ignored the faceless assessment requirement.
Final Outcome
- All writ petitions filed by S.B. Realtech were allowed.
- The aforementioned notices and the order dated 30‑03‑2023 are set aside for want of jurisdiction.
- The interim order previously passed stands merged with this judgment.
- All pending applications in the matter are disposed of accordingly.
Topics: Tax Law, Judicial Review