D.D. Steels vs Income Tax Officer, Ward 1, Godhra
2025 Latest Caselaw 6663 Guj

Gujarat High Court

D.D. Steels vs Income Tax Officer, Ward 1, Godhra on 16 September, 2025

Author: Bhargav D. Karia

Bench: Bhargav D. Karia

                                                                                                       NEUTRAL CITATION




                              C/SCA/1750/2025                           ORDER DATED: 16/09/2025

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                                      IN THE HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD

                                       R/SPECIAL CIVIL APPLICATION NO. 1750 of 2025

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                                                     D.D. STEELS
                                                        Versus
                                   INCOME TAX OFFICER, WARD 1, GODHRA & ORS.
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                       Appearance:
                       MR. HARDIK V VORA(7123) for the Petitioner(s) No. 1
                       KARAN G SANGHANI(7945) for the Respondent(s) No. 1,3
                       MR NIKUNT K RAVAL(5558) for the Respondent(s) No. 2
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                            CORAM:HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA
                                               and
                                  HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE PRANAV TRIVEDI

                       Date : 16/09/2025

                       ORAL ORDER

(PER : HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE BHARGAV D. KARIA)

1. Heard learned advocate Mr. Hardik V. Vora for the

petitioner and learned Senior Standing Counsel Mr. Karan G.

Sanghani for the respondents.

2. This petition is filed under Article 226 of the Constitution

of India challenging the notice under section 148 of the Income

Tax Act, 1961 (For short "the Act") dated 26.07.2022 on the

ground that the notice would be invalid and time barred.

3. Brief facts of the case are that the respondent Assessing

Officer issued notice dated 30.06.2021 under section 148 of the

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C/SCA/1750/2025 ORDER DATED: 16/09/2025

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Act for the Assessment Year 2014-15 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 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

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Tax Officer, Ward(2), Surendranagar (Judgment dated

08.07.2025 rendered in Special Civil 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 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.

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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 view of the decision of the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Rajeev Bansal (supra):

SCA NO AY Date of notice No of days of Date of providing under section surviving time information under 148 under available till section 148A(b) TOLA 30.06.2021 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 of Date of Date of order under Last date for filing reply reply:- section 148A(d) issuance of notice and notice under under section 148 section 148:- as per surviving time:-

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.

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

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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

20.05.2022 and therefore, considering 15 days' time to file reply

by the assessee, the due date would be 03.06.2022. The

petitioner filed reply on 03.06.2022. The order under section

148A(d) of the Act as well as notice under section 148 of the Act

was issued on 26.07.2022. 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 10.06.2022.

8. Learned Senior Standing Counsel Mr. Karan Sanghani has

verified the above dates and could not controvert the same.

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9. In view of above, the impugned notice dated 26.07.2022

issued under section 148 of the Act would be invalid notice as

the said notice is issued after 10.06.2022 as per the decision of

Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Ashish Agarwal (supra).

Therefore, the impugned 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:

"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."

10. In view of foregoing reasons, impugned notice dated

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26.07.2022 is hereby quashed and set aside and all

consequential proceedings are also quashed and set aside.

(BHARGAV D. KARIA, J)

(PRANAV TRIVEDI,J) phalguni