Former ICAI Chief: Taxpayers Can Challenge IT Notices Received U/S 148 for Assessments Reopening

Under Section 148, Some taxpayers have imposed notices pertinent to the reopening of the assessments for the assessment years 2014-15, 2015-16, 2016-17, and 2017-18.

A former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India ((ICAI), the chartered accountants’ professional body, thinks that these tax notices were mistakenly sent as the limitation of 6 years lapsed on March 31, 2024.

All such stand is restricted by the limitation as of 31.03.2024 within the first proviso to Section 149(1),” wrote Ved Jain, former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) on ‘X’ (formerly Twitter).

Income Tax Notices Under Section 148

Section 148 of the Income Tax (I-T) Act empowers an assessing officer to assess or re-assess any taxable income that was inaccurately calculated and has not yet been evaluated following the relevant regulations.

After serving the notice the taxpayer is mandated to furnish the income tax return(ITR) within 30 days or any period explicitly expressed.

It’s Too Essential to Forget

It has been cited by Section 148 that the data furnished to the assessing officer should be the most crucial and is required to be superficial facts.

Before issuance of the notice to the taxpayer under section 148, the assessing officer would be directed to record and furnish the reasons in written form citing why he or she assumes that the taxpayer is escaping the income assessment.

Deliberations of Ex-president of ICAI

Ved Jain mentioned that these notices can be contested in a writ petition because the six-year period ended on March 31, 2024. He is optimistic that these notices can be invalidated because the time has already passed.

By way of writ petitions all these notices be challenged and can be quashed since 6 years had already lapsed on 31.3.2024 (sic), he wrote.

Likewise, 148 notices now issued in probe cases where earlier asstt under section 153A/153C was quashed by ITAT/High Court/ SC in the lack of any incriminating material, are also barred by limitation and can be quashed via filing writ before High Court, he added.

One tax expert cited that some of his clients have received the notices while another tax expert said that no notice has been obtained from her clients.