Mr. Dharan v. Prayer Clause – (A) Of The Petition Reads As Under

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAYPURTIPRASADCIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTIONPARAB Digitally signed byPURTI PRASAD PARABDate: 2023.10.0710:38:04 +0530WRIT PETITION NO. 9029 OF 2023 Kamlesh Vashdev Rohra V/s.Income Tax Officer,Ward 2(2) and Ors. ….Petitioner …Respondents ---- Mr. Dharan V. Gandhi a/w Ms. Aanchal Vyas for Petitioner.Mr. Ajeet Manwani a/w Ms. Samiksha Kanani for Respondents. ---- CORAM : K.R. SHRIRAM & NEELA GOKHALE, JJ. DATED : 4[th] OCTOBER 2023 P.C. : 1.Prayer clause – (a) of the petition reads as under : (a) that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to issue a Writ ofCertiorari or a Writ in the nature of Certiorari or any otherappropriate Writ, Order or direction, calling for the records of thePetitioner’s case and after going into the legality and proprietythereof, to quash and set aside the notice show cause notice issuedu/s 148A(b) of the Act dated 08.03.2023 (“Exhibit L”), theimpugned order dated 29.03.2023 passed under section 148A(d) ofthe Act (“Exhibit M”) and the subsequent notice dated 29.03.2023(“Exhibit N”) issued under section 148 of the Act. 2. It is petitioner’s case that the entire basis for reopening the assessment is by treating petitioner as a person without PAN Number and in whose accounts substantial amounts have been credited. It ispetitioner’s case that petitioner possesses PAN Number and has been filingreturns regularly including for the Assessment Year 2016-17 for which thenotice for reopening has been issued alleging escapement of income. 3.It is respondent’s case that the information they had receivedwas petitioner was a person without PAN number and notices sent topetitioner was not even replied. Mr. Gandhi states that the address to whichthe notices were sent was old address of petitioner and not the currentaddress which is mentioned in the returns filed by petitioner for subsequentyears. 4.We do not wish to go into all those details in the petition. Sincethe order under Section 148 A(d) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (the Act) hasbeen passed and consequently notice under Section 148 of the Act has beenissued without hearing or considering petitioner’s case, we hereby quashand set aside the order dated 29[th] March 2023 passed under Section 148A(d) of the Act and the consequential notice also dated 29[th] March 2023issued under Section 148 of the Act. 5.Petitioner shall reply to the notice dated 8[th] March 2023 issuedunder Section 148 A(b) of the Act within three weeks. 6.The notice under section 148 A(b) of the Act will be disposedafter giving personal hearing to petitioner, notice whereof shall becommunicated at least five working days in advance. 7.All rights and contentions of petitioner are kept open. 8.Petition disposed. 9.We clarify that we have not made any observations on themerits of the matter. (NEELA GOKHALE, J.) (K.R. SHRIRAM, J.)