High Courts
Realty Company's Sale of Long-Held Freehold Land Is Capital Gains Not Business Income: Madras Court
The Madras High Court has held that profits earned from the sale of decades-old freehold land must be taxed as capital gains and not as business income, rejecting the income tax department's attempt to treat the transaction as part of a real estate business. A division bench of Justices Anita Sumanth and Mummineni Sudheer Kumar said the record clearly showed that the land was held as a long-term asset and was sold without any development or trading activity. "The accounts reveal that the...
Delhi High Court Quashes Rejection of Nil Withholding Certificate For UK Education Firm, Says Ignored Rule 28AA
The Delhi High Court has quashed the rejection of a Nil Withholding Certificate sought by a UK-based education company after noting that the Assessing Officer (AO) failed to comply with the mandatory requirements under Rule 28AA of the Income Tax Rules, 1962.A Division Bench comprising Justices V. Kameswar Rao and Vinod Kumar set aside the certificate dated July 30, 2025, by which the Revenue had directed deduction of tax at source (TDS) at 15% under Section 197 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. For...
Delhi High Court Allows Income Tax Assessment Despite Notice Under Unused PAN, Orders Its Cancellation
The Delhi High Court recently (January 13) allowed income tax assessment proceedings to continue against a taxpayer despite him holding more than one Permanent Account Number (PAN) and directed that the unused PAN be cancelled. A Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar was dealing with a writ petition wherein the taxpayer challenged the continuation of assessment proceedings on the ground that notices had been issued under a PAN different from the one currently claimed by...
Bombay High Court Quashes Tax Reassessment Against Hospital Over Unsigned Reopening Notice
The Bombay High Court has set aside reassessment and penalty proceedings against Ambernath City Hospital Pvt. Ltd., holding that the Income Tax Department lacked jurisdiction to reopen the assessment, as the mandatory notice issued under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, was unsigned.Relying on its own decision in Prakash Krishnavtar Bhardwaj vs. Income Tax Officer,(2023), the court held, “the Notice issued under Section 148, having no signature affixed to it, either digitally or...
Employees Liable To Pay Tax Even If Employer Deducts TDS but Fails To Deposit It: Kerala High Court
Holding that employees cannot avoid their income tax liability merely because their employer deducted tax at source from their salaries but failed to deposit it with the Income Tax Department, the Kerala High Court has ruled that the statutory protection under Section 205 of the Income Tax Act applies only when the deducted tax is actually paid to the Central Government. A division bench of Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar and Justice Jobin Sebastian madethe ruling while dismissing writ...
Bombay High Court Quashes Special Audit Order For Want Of Mandatory DIN
The Bombay High Court has held that an approval for a special audit issued without a Document Identification Number (DIN) is invalid and deemed never to have been issued. A Division Bench of Justice B P Colabawalla and Justice Firdosh P Pooniwalla allowed a writ petition filed by assessee Sanjay Nathalal Shah and quashed a special audit ordered for Assessment Year 2023–24 . Relying on a CBDT circular issued in August 2019, which mandates that every communication, including statutory approvals,...
Income Tax Dept Cannot Reopen Assessment on New Grounds Without Due Notice: Calcutta High Court
The Calcutta High Court has recently held that the income tax department cannot reopen a completed assessment by raising new issues without first following the mandatory procedure under the Income Tax Act. On this basis, the court set aside the reassessment notice issued against a government-owned company. Under the tax law, Sections 148 and 148A require the department to first issue a detailed notice explaining why it believes income may have escaped tax, give the taxpayer an opportunity to...