Gujarat High Court
Star Rays vs Assistant Commissioner Of Income Tax, ... on 24 June, 2025
Author: Bhargav D. Karia
Bench: Bhargav D. Karia
NEUTRAL CITATION
C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD
R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 2091 of 2023
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STAR RAYS
Versus
ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, CIRCLE 1(1)(1), SURAT &
ANR.
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Appearance:
MR B S SOPARKAR(6851) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
KARAN G SANGHANI(7945) for the Respondent(s) No. 1,2
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CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA
and
HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI
Date : 24/06/2025
ORAL ORDER
(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI)
1. Heard learned advocate Mr. B.S.Soparkar
for the petitioner and learned Senior
Standing Counsel Mr. Karan Sanghani for
the respondents.
2. This petition is filed challenging the
notices issued under section 148 of the
Income Tax Act, 1961 [for short 'the Act']
for the Assessment Year 2015-16.
3. The facts leading to filing of the present
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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petition are that the petitioner filed its
return of income for Assessment Year 2015-
16 on 28.11.2015 declaring total income at
Rs.44,70,79,820/-. The case was selected
for scrutiny on issue of TDS and the order
under Section 201(1)/201(1A) of the Act
was passed on 23.8.2017.
4. The petitioner filed appeal against the
said order before the CIT(A) and vide
order dated 31.8.2018, the CIT(A) allowed
the appeal of the petitioner. Against this
order of CIT(A), the revenue filed appeal
before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal
(for short' ITAT') and vide order dated
28.2.2022 the ITAT was pleased to dismiss
the appeal of the revenue.
5. It is the case of the petitioner that
impugned notice under Section 148 of the
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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Act was issued on 29.6.2021, asking the
petitioner to file return of income of
Assessment Year 2015-16. The petitioner
had also challenged the jurisdiction to
issue the notice as well as validity of
the same before the Hon'ble Gujarat High
Court vide Special Civil Application No.
15976 of 2021. Eventually the said
petition was disposed of in view of the
judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in
the case of Union of India and others v.
Ashish Agarwal [Civil Appeal No.
3005/2022 and allied matters, decided on
4.5.2022.
6. Thereafter, petitioner received notice
under Section 148A(b) of the Act on
1.6.2022. The petitioner filed objections
on 14.6.2022. The respondent passed
impugned order under Section 148A(d)
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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rejecting objections of the petitioner and
issued the impugned notice under Section
148 of the Act.
7. Learned advocate Mr. B.S.Soparkar for the
petitioner referred to and relied upon the
subsequent order/decision of the Hon'ble
Apex Court in case of Deepak Steel and
Power Ltd vs. Central Board of Direct
Taxes reported in [2025] 174 taxmann.com
144 (SC) wherein, the Hon'ble Apex Court,
after recording the concession of the
learned advocate for the department and in
view of the concession given before the
Apex Court by learned advocate appearing
for the Revenue as recorded in para 19(f)
of the judgment in case of Union of India
vs. Rajeev Bansal reported in 469 ITR 46
SC, has quashed and set aside the notice
issued after 31.03.2021 under section
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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148A(b) of the Act for A.Y. 2015-16 as
under:
"1. Leave granted.
2. These appeals arise from the order
passed by the High Court of Orissa at
Cuttack in Writ Petition (C) Nos.
2446 of 2023, 2543 of 2023 dated
1.2.2023 and 2544 of 2023 dated
10.02.2023 respectively by which the
High Court disposed of the original
writ petitions in the following
terms:-
"1. The memo of appearance filed
by Mr. S. S. Mohapatra, learned
Senior Standing Counsel for
Revenue Department on behalf of
Opposite Parties is taken on
record.
2. In view of the order passed by
this Court on 1st December, 2022
in a batch of writ petitions of
which W.P.(C) No.9191 of 2022
(Kailash Kedia v. Income Tax
Officer) was a lead matter and
the subsequent order dated 10th
January, 2023 passed in W.P.(C)
No.36314 of 2022 (Shiv Mettalicks
Pvt. Ltd., Rourkela v. Principal
Commissioner of Income Tax,
Sambalpur), the Court declines to
entertain the present writ
petition, but leaves it open to
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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the Petitioner to raise all
grounds available to the
Petitioner in accordance with law
17:51:47 IST Reason: including
the grounds urged in the present
petition at the appropriate stage
as explained by the Court in
those orders.
3. The writ petition is disposed
of in the above terms."
3. We heard Mr. Saswat Kumar Acharya,
the learned counsel appearing for the
appellants(assessee) and Mr.
Chandrashekhar, the learned counsel
appearing for the revenue.
4. The learned counsel appearing for
the revenue with his usual fairness
invited the attention of this Court to
a three judge bench decision of this
Court in Union of India and Ors. v.
Rajeev Bansal, reported in 2024 SCC
OnLine SC 2693, more particularly,
paragraph 19(f) which reads thus:-
"19. (f) The Revenue concedes
that for the assessment year
2015- 2016, all notices issued on
or after April 1, 2021 will have
to be dropped as they will not
fall for completion during the
period prescribed under the
Taxation and other Laws
(Relaxation and Amendment of
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Certain Provisions) Act, 2020."
5. As the revenue made a concession in
the aforesaid decision that is for the
assessment year 2015-2016, all notices
issued on or after 1st April, 2021
will have to be dropped as they would
not fall for completion during the
period prescribed under the taxation
and other laws (Relaxation and
Amendment of certain Provisions Act,
2020). Nothing further is required to
be adjudicated in this matter as the
notices so far as the present
litigation is concerned is dated
25.6.2021.
6. In view of the aforesaid, in such
circumstances referred to above the
original writ petition nos.2446 of
2023, 2543 of 2023 and 2544 of 2023
respectively filed before the High
Court of Orissa at cuttack stands
allowed.
7. The impugned notice therein stands
quashed and set aside.
8. The relief in terms of prayer (a)
is granted.
9. The appeals stand disposed of in
the above terms.
10. Pending application(s), if any,
stand disposed of.
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8. Similar orders are also passed by the Apex
Court in the following cases:
Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax,
Circle 19(1) and ors vs. Nehal Ashit Shah
in Special Leave Petition (Civil) Diary
No. 57209/2024;
The Income Tax Officer Ward 1(2) Jaipur
vs. R.K.Build Creations Private Limited in
Special Leave Petition (Civil) Diary No.
59625/2024.
9. The Delhi High Court has also passed the
similar order in following cases:
Bhagwan Sahai Sharma vs. Deputy
Commissioner of Income Tax reported in
[2025] 174 taxmann.com 14 (Delhi)
Lalit Gulati vs. Assistant Commissioner of
taxmann.com 273 (Delhi);
10. The Punjab and Haryana High Court has
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taken similar decision in following case:
Jay Jay Agro Industries vs. Income Tax
Officer, Ward-I, Karnal & Anr in CWP
7405/2025
11. Rajasthan High Court has taken similar
decision in following case:
Shreyansh Mehta S/o Shri Shanti Lal Mehta,
vs. Income Tax Officer, Udaipur in Civil
Writ Petition No. 3299/2023.
12. Karnataka High Court has taken similar
decision in following case:-
Shri Siddaiah Gurappaji vs. The Assistant
Commissioner of Income Tax and ors in Writ
Petition No. 20292 of 2023.
13. Considering the facts of the case, it is
not in dispute that the respondent-
Assessing Officer has issued the notice
under section 148A(b) of the Act after the
period of six years were over on
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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31.03.2022. As observed by the Hon'ble
Apex Court in case of Deepak Steel and
Power Ltd(Supra) and in view of the
concession made by the Revenue before the
Apex Court for the Assessment Year 2015-
16, all the notices issued on or after
01.04.2021 will have to be dropped as they
would not fall for completion during the
period prescribed under the Taxation and
Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of
Certain Provisions) Act, 2020 and
therefore, nothing further is required to
be adjudicated in the matters as the
notice so far as the present petitions are
concerned, though dated 31.03.2021,
admittedly have been issued after
01.04.2021.
14. It is also not in dispute that the notice
under section 148A(b) have been issued
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C/SCA/2091/2023 ORDER DATED: 24/06/2025
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pursuant to the decision of the Hon'ble
Apex Court in Ashish Agarwal (supra) dated
04.05.2022 admittedly after 31.03.2022.
Therefore, on both counts, the notice
issued under section 148 of the Act dated
27.07.2022 would be time barred.
15. In view of the above, the petition
succeeds and is accordingly allowed.
Impugned notice issued under section 148
of the Act is hereby quashed and set
aside. The petition is accordingly
disposed of.
(BHARGAV D. KARIA, J)
(PRANAV TRIVEDI,J)
SAJ GEORGE
