HC Quashes Notices Issued by Jurisdictional Officers: Re-Assessment Must Be 100% Faceless

The petitioner, M/s Jagannadhapuram Primary Agricultural Co-op Society, along with a batch of other assessees, challenged reassessment proceedings initiated under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The impugned notices and prior orders under Section 148A(d) were issued by the respective Jurisdictional Assessing Officers (JAOs).

The petitioners contended that pursuant to the introduction of the E-Assessment of Income Escaping Assessment Scheme, 2022, all reassessment proceedings under Sections 147 and 148 are required to be conducted in a completely faceless manner through automated allocation.

Issue Before HC: Whether the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer continues to have concurrent jurisdiction to issue reassessment notices under Section 148 after the implementation of Section 151A and the mandatory faceless reassessment scheme.

HC’s Decision: The High Court allowed the writ petitions and quashed the reassessment notices and orders issued by the Jurisdictional Assessing Officers. Relying on High Court‘s decisions in Hexaware Technologies and Prakash Pandurang Patil, which the Supreme Court upheld, the Court held that Section 151A and the 2022 Scheme mandate that reassessment proceedings “shall be through automated allocation”.

The Court clarified that once a faceless mechanism is statutorily prescribed, there is no concept of concurrent jurisdiction between the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer and the Faceless Assessing Officer. Any action taken by the JAO contrary to the faceless framework was deemed redundant, lacking jurisdiction, and in violation of the statutory scheme.

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