Disposed¶31

Ramesh Chandra Verma v. Union of India and Ors.

Punjab & Haryana HC11 Feb 2025CWP/3320/2023

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

Keywords: Section 148 notice; Section 148A(d) reasons NIL; Income Tax Act 1961; AY 2014-2015; NFAC exclusive jurisdiction; CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022; jurisdiction of Issuing Authority; Jatinder Singh Bhangu CWP No. 15745-2024 (19.07.2024); Jasjit Singh CWP No. 21509-2023 (29.07.2024); disposal in terms of Co-ordinate Bench judgments; liberty to revenue to proceed per procedure; Punjab and Haryana High Court at Chandigarh.

What did the court decide?

Writ petition disposed of in terms of the Co-ordinate Bench judgments in Jatinder Singh Bhangu (supra) and Jasjit Singh (supra); all pending applications, if any, also stand disposed of. ¶31

Ramesh Chandra Verma Vs Union of India and Ors. — Income Tax | Punjab & Haryana HC (2025)

What the court decided

AI extract

Outcome

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

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Issue for consideration

Whether the Issuing Authority had jurisdiction to issue the Section 148 notices, the Section 148A(d) reasons and the consequential proceedings for AY 2014-2015, given the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 enumerating that the NFAC has exclusive power to issue notices under Section 148.

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Court's answer

The issue raised in the present writ petition is 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 allowed writ petitions on 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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Ratio / Principle

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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Detailed headnote1 paragraphs

Punjab and Haryana High Court (Sudeepti Sharma, J., with Arun Palli, J.) disposed of CWP-3320-2023 (O&M), decided 11.02.2025, filed by Ramesh Chandra Verma challenging notices dated 15.04.2021, 27.08.2022 and 26.07.2022 issued under Section 148, and undated reasons NIL issued under Section 148A(d), of the Income Tax Act, 1961, together with consequential proceedings, for AY 2014-2015, on the ground that the Issuing Authority had no jurisdiction in view of the CBDT circular/notification dated 29.03.2022 enumerating that the NFAC has exclusive power to issue Section 148 notices. Finding the issue covered by Co-ordinate Bench decisions in Jatinder Singh Bhangu vs. Union of India (CWP No. 15745-2024, decided 19.07.2024) and Jasjit Singh vs. Union of India (CWP No. 21509-2023, decided 29.07.2024), which had allowed writ petitions on the same issue with liberty to the revenue to follow the procedure under the Act, 1961, if so advised, the Court disposed of the petition in terms of those decisions; pending applications were also disposed of. C.M. Nos. 1770-2025 and 1771-2025 were allowed, taking Annexures P-20 and P-21 on record.

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CWP-3320-2023

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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

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106+246

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CWP-3320-2023 (O&M) Date of Decision:-11.02.2025

Ramesh Chandra Verma

....Petitioner

Vs.

Union of India & ors. ...Respondents

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CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE ARUN PALLI HON'BLE MRS. JUSTICE SUDEEPTI SHARMA

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Present: Mr. Gurdeep Singh, Advocate for the petitioner.

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Ms. Gauri Neo Rampal, Sr. Standing counsel with Mr. V.Vedika Rao, Advocate for the respondent-Union of India.

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SUDEEPTI SHARMA, J.

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C.M. No. 1770-2025

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Exemption application is allowed as prayed for.

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C.M. No. 1771-2025

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Application is allowed as prayed for.

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Accordingly, Anneuxres P-20 and P-21 filed on behalf of the petitioner, are taken on record.

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CWP No. 3220-2023

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Challenge in the instant writ petition is to notices dated 15.04.2021, 27.08.2022 issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short ‘Act 1961”); undated reasons NIL issued under Section 148 A(d) of the Act, 1961; notice dated 26.07.2022 issued under Section 148 of the Act, 1961 and consequential proceedings, for AY 2014-2015.

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Learned counsel for the petitioner contends that the issue

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Gaurav Arora 2025.02.19 13:35 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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CWP-3320-2023

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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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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 notices dated 15.04.2021, 27.08.2022 issued under Section 148 of the Act, 1961; undated reasons NIL issued under Section 148 A(d) of the Act, 1961; notice dated 26.07.2022 issued under Section 148 of the Act, 1961 and consequential proceedings, for AY 2014-2015, 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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