Income Tax Act | S. 153C Proceedings Unsustainable Without Incriminating Material Found In Search: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court has held that proceedings under Section 153C of the Income Tax Act cannot be initiated unless incriminating material relating to the assessee is found during a search and both the assessing officers (the Assessing Officer of the searched person as well as the Assessing Officer of the person other than the searched person) record the necessary satisfaction.Section 153C of the Income Tax Act contains a special provision relating to the assessment of 'other person', pursuant...

Revisional Power U/S 263 Income Tax Act Cannot Be Upheld By Tribunal On Grounds Not Taken By Commissioner: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that a tribunal cannot travel beyond the grounds not cited by the commissioner while exercising jurisdiction under Section 263 Income Tax Act.Justices A. Muhamed Mustaque and Harisankar V. Menon stated that only one reason was highlighted by the Commissioner for exercising the power under Section 263 of the Act and the Tribunal having found the said reason as not a valid one, the Tribunal should have stopped there rather than making further observations as regards...

Income Tax Act | Payment For IPLC Services Not 'Royalty' U/S 9; Assessee Entitled To Deduction U/S 40(a)(i): Madras High Court

The Madras High Court has held that payment for IPLC (International Private Leased Circuits) Services does not constitute 'royalty' under Section 9 of the Income Tax Act, and that the assessee is entitled to a deduction under Section 40(a)(i) of the Income Tax Act. Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan examined whether the payment made by the assessee for IPLC services constitutes 'royalty' under Section 9 of the Income Tax Act, and whether the assessee is...

Income Tax Act | Refund Can't Be Withheld U/S 245 Unless Department Establishes Tax Liability: Calcutta High Court

The Calcutta High Court stated that the Income Tax Department cannot withhold a refund under Section 245 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, unless it establishes tax liability. The Bench of Justice Raja Basu Chowdhury observed that it is true that Section 245 of the said Act authorises the Income Tax Department to set off a refund against remaining tax payable. Unfortunately, in this case, the respondent has not been able to demonstrate that any amount is payable or is due from the...

Punjab & Haryana High Court Directs CBDT To Issue Circular Extending ITR Due Date For Audit Cases To 30.11.2025 For A.Y. 2025-26

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) to issue a circular extending the ITR (Income Tax Return) due date for audit cases to 30.11.2025 for the Assessment Year 2025-2026. Justices Lisa Gill and Meenakshi I. Mehta were addressing a petition filed by the assessee/petitioner seeking a direction to the Central Board of Direct Taxes to extend the due date for filing of tax audit reports for a reasonable period from 30.09.2025 and,...

Income Tax Act | Mechanical 'Rubber-Stamp' Approval U/S 153D Vitiates Entire Search Assessment: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has held that prior approval under Section 153D of the Income Tax Act is not a mere technical or procedural formality, and that mechanical, en masse sanction without application of mind vitiates the entire assessment under Section 153A. A Division Bench of Justice M.S. Sonak and Justice Advait M. Sethna, while deciding a batch of over 60 Income Tax Appeals filed by the Revenue led by Pr. Commissioner of Income Tax Central 4, dismissed the appeals at the admission...

Income Tax Act | SBI Not 'Assessee In Default' U/S 201 For Not Deducting TDS While Obeying Court's Interim Order: Kerala High Court

The Kerala High Court has held that the State Bank of India (SBI) cannot be treated as an 'assessee in default' under Section 201 of the Income Tax Act for not deducting Tax Deducted at Source (TDS) on Leave Travel Concession (LTC) payments, as it was bound by an interim order which prohibited such deduction. Justices A. Muhamed Mustaque and Harisankar V. Menon examined whether the SBI, having been restrained by an interim order of the High Court from deducting TDS, could be held to be...

Delhi High Court Refuses To Condone 9-Month Delay By Assessee In Filing Revised Income Tax Return

The Delhi High Court has refused to condone a delay of 9-months by an assessee in filing his revised income tax return (ITR).A division bench of Justices V. Kameswar Rao and Vinod Kumar remarked,“Surely it should not take nine months to realize that initial ITR has some mistakes, which requires a revised return.”The Court was dealing with a plea against rejection of Petitioner's application under Section 119(2)(b) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 seeking condonation of delay of nine months in filing...

IT Act | Reassessment Cannot Be Used To Review Assessment When All Documents Were Earlier Disclosed: Bombay High Court

The Bombay High Court has held that reassessment proceedings under Sections 148 & 148A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 cannot be initiated to re-open issues that were already scrutinized and accepted during the original assessment, observing that a mere change of mind on the part of the Assessing Officer does not constitute reason to believe nor permit reassessment. A Division Bench of Justice B.P. Colabawalla and Justice Amit S. Jamsandekar, while deciding a writ petition filed by the...

Income Tax Act | Reassessment Against Entity Converted Into LLP Is Void: Bombay High Court Sets Aside S.148 Notice Issued To Defunct Company

The Bombay High Court has set aside a reassessment notice issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 against a company that had ceased to exist due to conversion into a Limited Liability Partnership (LLP), holding that reopening of assessment against a non-existent entity is “illegal and bad-in-law”. A Division Bench of Justice B.P. Colabawalla and Justice Amit S. Jamsandekar was hearing a writ petition filed by Erangal Comtrade and Consultancy LLP (successor of Erangal...

NFAC Doesn't Take Away Jurisdictional Assessing Officer's Power To Initiate Reassessment U/S 148 Income Tax Act: Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court has held that the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO) and Faceless Assessing Officer (FAO) have jurisdiction to issue reassessment notices under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961.The position has been in dispute since introduction of the E-Assessment of Income Escaping Assessment Scheme, 2022, which led to the setting up of the National Faceless Assessment Centre with Faceless Assessing Officers.Petitioner-assessee argued that now, FAO alone has jurisdiction to...

Income Tax Reassessment Notice Generated On Last Day Of Limitation But Uploaded Next Day Due To Portal Glitch Is Time-Barred: Delhi HC

The Delhi High Court recently found time-barred, an income tax reassessment notice generated by the Department on the last day of the limitation window but, issued to the assessee only a day after.The limitation period in the case at hand expired on June 30, 2025 (inclusive).The Income Tax Department claimed that the notice was generated on June 30, 2025 at 21:14:46 and signed on June 30, 2025 at 21:16:15 however, due to a technical glitch, it was shared on the assessee's e-filing portal only...