Gujarat High Court
M/S Sahil Infra Creative Pvt Ltd vs Income Tax Officer Ward 2(1)(3) , Surat on 30 September, 2025
Author: Bhargav D. Karia
Bench: Bhargav D. Karia
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 15498 of 2023
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M/S SAHIL INFRA CREATIVE PVT LTD
Versus
INCOME TAX OFFICER WARD 2(1)(3) , SURAT & ANR.
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Appearance:
MR. BHAUMIK DHOLARIYA(7009) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
KARAN G SANGHANI(7945) for the Respondent(s) No. 1
MRS KALPANA K RAVAL(1046) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI
Date : 30/09/2025
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA)
1. Heard learned advocate Mr. Aditya Ajgaonkar through video conference for learned advocate Mr. Bhaumik Dholariya for the petitioner and learned Senior Standing Counsel Mr. Karan Sanghani for the respondent.
2. This petition is filed under Article Page 1 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined 226 of the Constitution of India challenging the notice under section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (For short "the Act") dated 06.07.2023 on the ground that the notice would be invalid and time barred. It is pertinent to note that pursuant to original notice dated 30.06.2021, order dated 30.07.2022 under section 148A(d) of the Act was passed and also notice of even date under section 148 was issued which came to be challenged before this Court by preferring Special Civil Application NO.2390/2023 wherein this Court remanded the matter quashing and setting aside the order dated 30.07.2022. Thereafter the respondent authorities passed the order impugned in this petition. However, we find that the notice under section 148 of the Act itself Page 2 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined was invalid as it was time barred as per the decision in case of Union of India v. Rajeev Bansal reported in (2024) 469 ITR 46 (SC).
3. Brief facts of the case are that the respondent Assessing Officer issued notice dated 30.06.2021 under section 148 of the Act for the Assessment Year 2016-2017 during the extended time period as per Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation of Certain Provisions) Ordinance, 2020 [(2020) 422 ITR (St.) 116] (For short "TOLA").
4. In view of the decision of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Union of India and others v. Ashish Agarwal reported in (2022) 444 ITR 1 (SC), the aforesaid notice was to be treated as notice under Page 3 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined section 148A(b) of the Act which has come into statute with effect from 01.04.2021.
5. The Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Union of India v. Rajeev Bansal reported in (2024) 469 ITR 46 (SC) has laid down the law to consider such notice as valid notice or invalid notice depending upon the surviving time left between the date of issuance of notice under section 148 of the Act read with section 3(1) of TOLA upto 30.06.2021 and the issuance of notice under section 148 pursuant to the directions issued by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Ashish Agarwal (supra).
6. This Court in case of Dhanraj Govindram Kella v. Income Tax Officer, Ward(2), Surendranagar (Judgment dated 08.07.2025 rendered in Special Civil Page 4 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined Application No.6387 of 2023 and allied matters) has considered in detail the submissions made by both the sides and has held as under:
"65. The alternative contention of the petitioner as to whether notices would be valid notice or invalid notice considering 'surviving time' between the date of the issuance of notices under TOLA and 30th June, 2021 or not is required to be considered and for that each matter has to be considered separately on the basis of the facts of case considering the date of issuance of notices under section 148 under TOLA by the Revenue and thereafter date of supplying information to the assessee and date of passing of order under section 148A(d) and date of issuance of notice under section 148 of the Act so as to consider whether issuance of notice under section 148 of the Act is within 'surviving time' as per the direction of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra) or not.
66. So far as Assessment Years 2013-2014 and 2014-2015 are concerned, the period of three Page 5 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined years from the end of the assessment year would be over prior to 20.03.2020 and the period of six years would be over between 20.03.2020 and 30.06.2021.
Therefore, the notices issued under section 148 of the Act under old regime between 01.04.2021 and 30.06.2021 as per TOLA, will be a valid notice if the notice under section 148 of the Act under new regime is issued within the period of 'surviving time' as per the directions issued by Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra). For the Assessment Years 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 are concerned, the notice issued under section 148 of the Act under old regime between 01.04.2021 and 30.06.2021 under TOLA would be considered to be issued within three years from the end of the relevant assessment year as three years would complete within the period of 20.03.2020 and 30.06.2021.
67. Therefore, in facts of these petitions, following data is required to be considered to find out 'surviving time' to decide as to whether the impugned notices under section 148 of the Act issued under the new regime as per the decision of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Ashish Agarwal (supra) would be valid notice or not in Page 6 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined view of the decision of the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra):
SCA NO AY Date of No of days Date of notice under of surviving providing section 148 time information under TOLA available under till section 30.06.2021 148A(b) 6387/2023 2013-2014 17.06.2021 13 26.05.2022 5688/2023 2014-2015 09.06.2021 21 23.05.2022 22260/2022 2016-2017 30.06.2021 1 23.05.2022 996/2023 2017-2018 30.06.2021 1 24.05.2022 SCA NO Due date Date of Date of Last date for issuance of filing reply:- order of notice under reply under section 148 as per section surviving time:-
148A(d) and notice under section 148:-
6387/2023 09.06.2022 04.06.2022 29.07.2022 22.06.2022 5688/2023 06.06.2022 - 27.07.2022 27.06.2022 22260/2022 07.06.2022 06.07.2022 30.07.2022 14.06.2022 996/2023 11.06.2022 10.06.2022 19.07.2022 18.06.2022
68. It is apparent from the above details that impugned notice under section 148 of the Act is issued beyond the period of 'surviving time' as per the direction of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra)and therefore, such notices would be invalid notices.
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NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined
69.The impugned notices issued under section 148 of the Act are accordingly quashed and set aside being invalid having been issued beyond the 'surviving time'. Accordingly, impugned orders passed under section 148A(d) of the Act would also not survive and are accordingly, quashed and set aside. Subsequent proceedings, if any, undertaken by the respondent would not survive and are also quashed and set aside.
70. Rule is made absolute to the aforesaid extent. No order as to costs."
7. In the facts of the case, the respondent Assessing Officer has provided information pursuant to the directions issued by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Ashish Agarwal (supra) on 23.05.2022 and therefore, considering 15 days' time to file reply by the assessee, the due date would be 07.06.2022. The order under section 148A(d) of the Act as well as notice under section 148 of the Act was Page 8 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025 NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined issued on 30.07.2022. However, considering the period of limitation from the date of issuance of notice under section 148 read with TOLA upto 30.06.2021, the limitation for issuance of notice under section 148 of the Act applying the decision of Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Ashish Agarwal (supra) as well as Rajeev Bansal (supra), would be 14.06.2022.
8. It appears that the petitioner challenged the order dated 30.07.2022 passed under section 148A(d) of the Act as well as consequential notice of even date by preferring Special Civil Application No.2390/2023 wherein this Court set aside the said notice as well as order while remanding the matter to competent Assessing Officer to decide afresh. Page 9 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025
NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined
9. The respondent Assessing Officer thereafter passed the impugned order dated 06.07.2023 under section 148A(d) of the Act and also issued notice of even date under section 148 of the Act which is challenged in the present petition.
10. Learned Senior Standing Counsel Mr. Karan Sanghani has verified the above dates and could not controvert the same.
11. In view of the above, the original notice having been issued beyond the 'surviving time' would be invalid notice as held by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra) in the following paragraph no. 114 (g) and (h) of the judgment and therefore, subsequent proceedings also is required to be quashed and set aside:
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NEUTRAL CITATION C/SCA/15498/2023 ORDER DATED: 30/09/2025 undefined "114. In view of the above discussion, we conclude that:
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(g) The time during which the show-cause notices were deemed to be stayed is from the date of issuance of the deemed notice between April 1, 2021 and June 30, 2021 till the supply of relevant information and material by the Assessing Officers to the assessees in terms of the directions issued by this court in Union of India v. Ashish Agarwal [(2022) 444 ITR 1 (SC); (2023) 1 SCC 617.] , and the period of two weeks allowed to the assessees to respond to the show- cause notices; and
(h) The Assessing Officers were required to issue the reassessment notice under section 148 of the new regime within the time limit surviving under the Income-tax Act read with the Taxation and other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Act, 2020.
All notices issued beyond the surviving period are time barred and liable to be set aside."
12. In view of foregoing reasons the impugned notices as well as orders are hereby quashed and set aside.
(BHARGAV D. KARIA, J) (PRANAV TRIVEDI,J) RAGHUNATH R NAIR Page 11 of 11 Uploaded by RAGHUNATH R NAIR(HC00196) on Mon Oct 06 2025 Downloaded on : Mon Oct 06 22:53:11 IST 2025