Gstaad Hotels Pvt. Ltd vs The Assessing Authority National ...
2022 Latest Caselaw 1391 Bom

          Digitally
          signed by
GAURI     GAURI AMIT
          GAEKWAD
AMIT      Date:
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GAEKWAD   2022.02.11
          17:44:25
          +0530
                               IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
                                   ORDINARY ORIGINAL CIVIL JURISDICTION
                                       WRIT PETITION NO.2253 OF 2021

              Gstaad Hotels Private Limited                              ....Petitioner
                        V/s.
              The Assessing Authority
              National Faceless Assessment Centre, Delhi & Anr.        ....Respondents
                                                  ----
              Mr. Nishit Gandhi a/w. Ms. Akshita Bhandari for petitioner.
              Mr. Sham V. Walve i/b. Mr. Suresh Kumar for respondents.
                                                  ----
                                                     CORAM : K.R. SHRIRAM &
                                                                N.J. JAMADAR, JJ.

DATED : 9th FEBRUARY 2022

P.C. :

1 We have heard the counsel for petitioner as well as counsel for

respondents. Petitioner is impugning an assessment order dated 22 nd April

2021 and the consequent notice of demand also dated 22 nd April 2021.

Various grounds have been raised to impugn the assessment order. The

primary ground is that the show cause notice cum draft assessment order

dated 19th April 2021 was digitally signed at only 18.40 P.M. of 19 th April

2021 but time to respond was given only till 23:59 hours of 20 th April 2021.

It is also averred in the petition that during this time there was lock down in

force in the State due to the second wave of COVID pandemic.

2 Moreover, in the show cause notice cum draft assessment order,

in paragraph 5, the total taxable income is mentioned as NIL and paragraph

6 says "............... the income of the assessee is proposed to be assessed u/s

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143(3) r.w.s. 144B at Rs.Nil ........ ". The Assessing Officer despite giving such

a short notice has passed an assessment order dated 22 nd April 2021 in

which he has also stated that no reply has been filed though a show cause

notice/draft assessment order was provided on 19 th April 2021. The

Assessing Officer has not even explained why such a short notice was given.

Moreover, in the assessment order, the total taxable income is given as

Rs.53,80,12,676/- when in the show cause notice cum draft assessment

order the amount mentioned is NIL.

3 In the circumstances, we set aside the assessment order dated

22nd April 2021 and all consequential notices and demands and remand the

matter for denovo consideration. The matter shall be placed before an

officer different from the officer who had passed the impugned order dated

22nd April 2021.

4 Respondents shall provide the link to petitioner to which the

response to the show cause notice cum draft assessment order has to be

uploaded. This link shall be provided within one week of this order getting

uploaded and within two weeks thereafter, the response shall be filed by

petitioner. The concerned authority shall strictly follow the mandatory

provisions of Section 144B of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Respondents shall

also give a personal hearing to petitioner and the notice of personal hearing

shall be communicated to petitioner atleast one week in advance and the

assessment order, after complying with the procedure required, shall be

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passed within twelve weeks of this order getting uploaded. If the concerned

authority is going to rely on any judgment or any order of the Tribunal or

Court, copy thereof shall be provided to petitioner in advance before the

personal hearing so that petitioner will be able to deal with the

same/distinguish the same during the personal hearing. Any order passed

shall be a reasoned and detailed order dealing with all the submissions of

petitioner.

5 The reason for interference by this Court as recorded in

paragraph 2 above indicate one thing - the Assessing Officer could not care

for the assessee and was not even conscious of what he was actually doing.

This is a pure form of harassment of the assessee, a tax payer. The entire

approach smacks of high handedness and don't care attitude.

6 By his/her conduct, the Assessing Officer has compelled

petitioner to knock at the doors of this Court and thereby has also impinged

on the valuable judicial time of this Court. In our view, this is a fit case

where this Assessing Officer should be saddled with substantial cost to drive

home a message that this kind of attitude will not be tolerated ever.

Therefore, we direct the concerned Assessing Officer, whose name is not

disclosed, to pay a sum of Rs.25,000/- as costs from his salary/personal

bank account to PM Cares Fund and affidavit in compliance shall be filed

within two weeks alongwith copy of the bank statement that this amount

has been paid from the Assessing Officer's own account. The account details

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of PM Cares Fund are as under :

Name of the Account : PM CARES Account Number : 60355358964 IFSC : MAHB0001160 Branch : UPSC - New Delhi

7 Petition disposed.

8 We clarify that we have not made any observation on the merits

of the case.

9 Petition be listed for compliance on 24th February 2022.

(N.J. JAMADAR, J.)                                           (K.R. SHRIRAM, J.)




Gauri Gaekwad