Section 148A(c) — the law in short
What the courts have decided on section 148A(c), in one screen. Read this first; open an entry when you need the facts, the reasoning and the source.
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Rahul Sachan v Income Tax Officer
High CourtHelps department
The officer passed the order under section 148A(d) without answering a single point in my reply. Can I get the reassessment quashed on that ground alone?
No, not on that ground alone. The Allahabad High Court held that section 148A does not oblige the Assessing Officer to deal with objections pointwise or to record detailed reasons. The old requirement of recording a 'reason to believe' has been done away with and replaced by a lighter, more subjective decision that it is a 'fit case' to issue a notice under section 148, on information that suggests escapement. The officer must not act whimsically, on extraneous material, or in ignorance of the reply, but an overall consideration is enough. Reading in a duty to give reasons for rejecting each objection would reintroduce 'reason to believe' by the back door. The petition was dismissed, with all merit defences left open.
Listed strongest first: Supreme Court, then High Court, then Tribunal, then CBDT. Nothing here has yet been read in full by a chartered accountant — open an entry to see where it came from.