Akshat Batra Vs Income Tax Officer Ward 1(1) Faridabad… — Income Tax | Punjab & Haryana HC (2025)

Akshat Batra Vs Income Tax Officer Ward 1(1) Faridabad… — Income Tax | Punjab & Haryana HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

Writ petition disposed of in terms of Jatinder Singh Bhangu (CWP No. 15745-2024, decided 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (CWP No. 21509-2023, decided 29.07.2024); all pending applications, if any, also disposed of.

Issue for consideration

Whether the notice dated 28.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for AY 2022-2023 was issued by an authority having jurisdiction, given the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 enumerating that the NFAC has exclusive power to issue notices under Section 148.

Court's answer

The present writ petition is disposed of in terms of the Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu (decided 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh (decided 29.07.2024), which allowed identical writ petitions on the same issue.

Ratio / Principle

The Court accepted that the issue raised in the petition stands covered by the said Co-ordinate Bench decisions, a position not disputed by learned counsel appearing for the Union of India.

Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Punjab and Haryana High Court (Sudeepti Sharma, J., authoring; Lisa Gill, J. on the bench) disposed of CWP-17559-2025 (decided 01.07.2025), by which Akshat Batra challenged a notice dated 28.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 and all consequential actions for AY 2022-2023, contending that the Issuing Authority lacked jurisdiction in view of the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 vesting exclusive power in the NFAC to issue Section 148 notices. Finding the issue covered by the 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) — which counsel for the Union of India did not dispute — the Court disposed of the petition in terms of those decisions, wherein similar petitions were allowed with liberty to the revenue to follow the procedure laid down under the Act, 1961 and proceed accordingly, if so advised. Pending applications, if any, were also disposed of.

CWP-17559-2025 [1]

IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

164

CWP-17559-2025 Date of decision: 01.07.2025

Akshat Batra

...Petitioner

Versus

Income Tax Officer, Ward 1 (1), Faridabad & others ...Respondents

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

Present: Mr. Kartik Bansal, Advocate for the petitioner.

Mr. Varun Issar, Sr. Standing counsel with Ms. Pridhi Sandhu, Jr. Standing counsel for the respondents

SUDEEPTI SHARMA, J.

Challenge in the present petition is to notice dated 28.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short ‘Act 1961) and all consequential actions, for AY 2022-2023.

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.

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

We have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the

Gaurav Arora 2025.07.04 16:09 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

CWP-17559-2025 [2]

whole records of the case.

The petitioner has challenged the notice dated 28.05.2025 issued under Section 148 of the Act, 1961 and all consequential actions, for AY 2022-2023 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.

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.

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.

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

(LISA GILL) JUDGE

(SUDEEPTI SHARMA) JUDGE

01.07.2025

Gaurav

Whether speaking/reasoned:Whether reportable:-

Yes/No Yes/No

Gaurav Arora 2025.07.04 16:09 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document