Allowed

Hero Cycles Ltd. v. Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, LUDHIANA-1 and Another

Punjab & Haryana HC10 Sept 2026CWP/7968/2023

Case brief

AI extract

What is this about?

This court allowed a second writ petition relying on binding precedents in Jasjit Singh and Jatinder Singh Bhangu. The respondents' notices and orders under Sections 148 and 144B were set aside for violation of statutory provisions. A notice for contempt was directed to the responsible officer.

What did the court decide?

Petitioner represented by evidence; impugned orders of 17.03.2023, 29.03.2023, 17.03.2023 and 22.03.2024 set aside. Notice issued for contempt proceedings against the concerned officer.

Hero Cycles Ltd. Vs Principal Commissioner of Income… — Income Tax | Punjab & Haryana HC (2026)

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110+243 IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA AT CHANDIGARH

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CM-9208-CWP-2024 in/and CWP-7968-2023 (O&M) Date of Decision: 10.09.2024

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HERO CYCLES LIMITED ..…...Petitioner

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V/s.

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PRINCIPAL COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, LUDHIANA-1 AND ANOTHER

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….....Respondent s

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CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV PRAKASH SHARMA HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJAY VASHISTH

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Present: M r. Alok Mittal, Advocate for t h e applicant-petitioner.

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M r. Ranvijay Singh, Senior Stan d ing Counsel, f or the respondent.

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******* SANJEEV PRAKASH SHARMA, J. (Oral)

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CM-9208-CWP-2024

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1. H aving regard to the reasons m e ntioned in the application file d by the petiti o ner, the same is allowed and d ocument is taken on record a s Annexure A- 1 .

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CWP-7968-2023 (O&M)

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2. I n spite of the interim order pas s ed by this Court in this case o n 25.04.2023, w hich was duly served on the re s pondents, it is informed that th e respondents h ave proceeded to pass final o rder dated 22.03.2024 raisin g demand and m aking additions, which has bee n taken on record today itself. 3. L earned counsel for both the p a rties ar e ad idem that the issu e involved in t h e present petition stands fina l ly examined and concluded b y this Court in CWP No.21509 of 2023 titled as Jasjit Singh vs. Union of India and others , decided on 29.07.2024, a n d by the Coordinate Bench i n

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Suresh Kumar 2024.09.13 16:52 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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CWP-7968-2023 (O&M)

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Page 2 of 4

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CWP No.15745 of 2024 titled as Jatinder Singh Bhangu vs. Union of India

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and others , d e cided on 19.07.2024.

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4. T his Court i n Jasjit Singh (supr a ) held as under:

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“16. We are in agreement w i th the view taken by the C oordinate Bench and hol d that such circular or i nstructions by the Board coul d not have been issued to o verride statutory provisions or to make them otiose or o bsolete. Legislative enact m ents having financial i mplications are required to be followed strictly and m andatorily. By exercising the p o wers contained in Sections 1 19 and 120 of the Act, 1961 as well as Section 144B (7 & 8 ), the authorities cannot be a llowed to usurp the legal p rovisions to their own sati s faction and convenience c ausing hardship to the assesse e s. It also leaves confusion i n the minds of the taxpayers. I n the opinion of this Court, i nstructions and circulars ca n be issued only for the p urpose of supplementing the s t atutory provisions and for t heir implementation.

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1 7. In view of the aforesaid disc u ssion, there is no occasion t o distinguish or take a differe n t view as suggested by the l earned counsel for the revenue f rom what has already been h eld by the Coordinate Bench.

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1 8. Keeping in view the law la i d down by the Coordinate B ench (supra), notices issued by the JAO under Section 148

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Suresh Kumar 2024.09.13 16:52 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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CWP-7968-2023 (O&M)

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Page 3 of 4

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o f the Act, 1961 and the proc e edings initiated thereafter w ithout conducting the faceles s assessment as envisaged u nder Section 144B of the Act, 1 961, have been found to be c ontrary to the provisions of th e Act, 1961 and accordingly n otices dated 28.02.2023, 16 . 03.2023, 20.03.2024 and 3 0.03.2023 and order dated 30.03.2023, are set aside for w ant of jurisdiction.

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1 9. The respondents-revenue w o uld be, however, at liberty t o follow the procedure as laid down under the Act, 1961 a nd proceed accordingly, if so a d vised. 2 0. All the writ petitions are a llowed. The interim order p assed by the Court shall stand merged with the present o rder.”

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5. K eeping in view above, we allow this Writ Petition in th e aforesaid ter m s. The observations and order p assed above shall apply mutati s mutandis to t h e present case. Accordingly, i m pugned order(s)/ notice(s) date d 17.03.2023, 2 9.03.2023 passed/issued by t he respondents are set aside . Another ord e r dated 22.03.2024 passed du r ing the pendency of this wri t petition base d on the notice issued under Sec t ion 148 of the Act, therefore, i s also set aside .

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6. W e find that the contents of th e CM to be correct to the exten t that the final order dated 22.03.2024 has b e en passed by the respondent – Assessment U nit, Income Tax Department, though it is in violation of th e interim order of this Court dated 25.04.2023, whereby we have restrained th e

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Suresh Kumar 2024.09.13 16:52 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

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CWP-7968-2023 (O&M)

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Page 4 of 4

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respondents f rom passing the final order. W h ile we have decided the presen t writ petition i n terms of the judgment in Jasjit Singh (supra), we propose t o issue notice to the concerned officer, who has passed the order date d 22.03.2024 t o explain his conduct within a p e riod of 15 days from the date o f issuance of n o tice, as to why the contempt pr o ceedings within the meaning o f Section 12 o f the Contempt of Courts Act, 1 9 71, be not initiated against him . For the said p urpose, the Registry is directed t o issue notice to him.

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[SANJEEV PRAKASH SHARMA] JUDGE

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September 10 , 2024	[SANJAY VASHISTH]
Ess Kay	JUDGE
Whether speaking / reasoned	: Yes / No
WhetherR eportable	: Yes / No

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Suresh Kumar 2024.09.13 16:52 I attest to the accuracy and integrity of this document

Hero Cycles Ltd. v. Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, LUDHIANA-1 and Another

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Hero Cycles Ltd. v. Principal Commissioner of Income Tax, LUDHIANA-1 and Another

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