Disposed¶25

Harmeet Singh v. Union of India and Others

Punjab & Haryana HC16 May 2025CWP/14189/2025

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

CWP-14189-2025 (O&M), Punjab & Haryana High Court, decided 16.05.2025; income tax reopening - jurisdictional challenge to Section 148 notice dated 06.05.2025, Section 148A(b) notice dated 25.03.2025 and Section 148A(d) order dated 06.05.2025 for AY 2021-2022; CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022; NFAC exclusive power to issue Section 148 notices; covered by Jatinder Singh Bhangu (CWP No. 15745-2024, 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (CWP No. 21509-2023, 29.07.2024); disposed of in terms of coordinate bench rulings; Harmeet Singh v. Union of India.

What did the court decide?

Writ petition disposed of in terms of the Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu (19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (29.07.2024); all pending applications, if any, also stand disposed of. ¶25

Harmeet Singh Vs Union of India and Others — Income Tax | Punjab & Haryana HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Writ petition disposed of in terms of the Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu (19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (29.07.2024); all pending applications, if any, also stand disposed of.

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Issue for consideration

Whether the impugned Section 148 notice dated 06.05.2025, Section 148A(b) notice dated 25.03.2025 and Section 148A(d) order dated 06.05.2025 for AY 2021-2022 were issued without jurisdiction by the Issuing Authority, in view of the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 enumerating that NFAC has exclusive power to issue notices under Section 148 of the Act, 1961.

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Court's answer

The issue raised in the writ petition is covered by the Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu and Jasjit Singh, and learned counsel for the Union of India did not dispute the same.

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Ratio / Principle

A Co-ordinate Bench of this Court had allowed writ petitions raising the same issue, granting liberty to the revenue to follow the procedure laid down under the Act, 1961 and proceed accordingly, if so advised.

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Key takeaways

The present writ petition is disposed of in terms of Jatinder Singh Bhangu (decided 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (decided 29.07.2024).ratio¶25

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Punjab & Haryana High Court (Coram: Lisa Gill and Sudeepti Sharma, JJ.; judgment by Sudeepti Sharma, J.), CWP-14189-2025 (O&M), decided 16.05.2025. Challenge to notice dated 06.05.2025 under Section 148, notice dated 25.03.2025 under Section 148A(b) and order dated 06.05.2025 under Section 148A(d) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, with all consequential actions, for AY 2021-2022, on the ground that the Issuing Authority lacked jurisdiction in view of the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 vesting exclusive power in NFAC to issue Section 148 notices. Counsel for the Union of India did not dispute that the matter stood covered by Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu (CWP No. 15745-2024, decided 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (CWP No. 21509-2023, decided 29.07.2024), wherein similar writ petitions were allowed with liberty to the revenue to follow the procedure under the Act, 1961, if so advised. Petition disposed of in terms of those decisions; pending applications disposed of.

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CWP-14189-2025

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

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134

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CWP-14189-2025 (O&M) Date of Decision:-16.05.2025

Harmeet Singh

....Petitioner

Vs.

Union of India and ors.

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...Respondents

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CORAM: HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE LISA GILL HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE SUDEEPTI SHARMA

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Present: Mr. Manpreet Singh Kanda, Advocate and Mr. Sarishti Sachdeva, Advocate for the petitioner.

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Mr. Saurabh Kapoor, Sr. Standing counsel with Ms. Muskan Gupta, Advocate for the respondents.

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SUDEEPTI SHARMA, J.

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Challenge in the instant writ petition is to notice dated 06.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short ‘Act 1961”); notice dated 25.03.2025 issued under Section 148 A (b) of the Act, 1961; order dated 06.05.2025 issued under Section 148 A (d) of the Act, 1961 and all consequential actions, for AY 2021-2022.

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Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the issue involved in the present writ petition is covered by the judgment passed by a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the cases of Jatinder Singh Bhangu vs. Union of India and others , passed in CWP No. 15745-2024 and connected matter, decided on 19.07.2024 and Jasjit Singh vs. Union of India and others (CWP No. 21509-2023 and other connected matters), decided on 29.07.2024 .

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Gaurav Arora 2025.05.21 10:37 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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CWP-14189-2025

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Learned counsel appearing for Union of India has also not disputed the same.

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We have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the whole records of the case.

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The petitioner has challenged the notice dated 06.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Act, 1961; notice dated 25.03.2025 issued under Section 148 A (b) of the Act, 1961; order dated 06.05.2025 issued under Section 148 A (d) of the Act, 1961 and all consequential actions, for AY 2021-2022, on the ground that the Issuing Authority had no jurisdiction to issue the same, in view of the circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 of the CBDT, wherein, it has been specifically enumerated that the NFAC has exclusive power to issue the notice under Section 148 of the Act, 1961.

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A Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Jatinder Singh Bhangu’s case (supra) and Jasjit Singh’s case (supra), allowed the writ petitions on the same issue, as raised in the present writ petition, by granting liberty to the revenue to follow the procedure as laid down under the Act, 1961 and proceed accordingly, if so advised.

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In view of the above, the present writ petition is disposed of, in terms of Jatinder Singh Bhangu’s case (supra), decided on 19.07.2024 and Jasjit Singh’s case (supra), decided on 29.07.2024

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All the pending applications, if any, also stand disposed of.

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(LISA GILL) (SUDEEPTI SHARMA) JUDGE JUDGE

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16.05.2025

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Gaurav Arora

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Whether speaking/reasoned : Yes/No Whether reportable : Yes/No

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Gaurav Arora 2025.05.21 10:37 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

Harmeet Singh v. Union of India and Others

Case brief

What is this about?

What did the court decide?

Harmeet Singh v. Union of India and Others

Case brief

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What did the court decide?

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