Delhi High Court: A Division Bench of Jyoti Singh and Anoop Kumar Mendiratta, JJ. sets aside notices sent to a deceased assessee in spite of being intimated about his death by the family.
The instant petition was filed by the petitioner who is the son of Late Mr. Amrit Thapar, the deceased assessee, assailing the impugned notices in relation to assessment year 2013-14 stating therein that income chargeable to tax for the assessment year 2013-14 had escaped assessment within the meaning of Section 147 of the Act and 30 days were granted to file a return in the prescribed form under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Act’), issued by Respondent 1.
Counsel for the petitioner submitted that the impugned notices are invalid in the eyes of law having been issued against a dead person as it was duly intimated by the wife of the deceased about the death of the assessee by sending his Death certificate.
The Court relied on judgment Sangeeta Vig v. ITO, in WP(C) 8276 of 2022 wherein it was observed that “the notice under Section 148 of the Act against a dead person was held to be null and void and all consequential proceedings/orders, including the assessment order and subsequent notices were set aside.”
The Court thus sets aside the impugned notices as they were sent against a dead person.
[Davinder Singh Thapar v. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, 2022 SCC OnLine Del 1778, decided on 13-06-2022]
Appearances
For petitioner – Mr Akshit Mago
For respondent- Ms Zehra Khan for R-1 and Mr Sanjay Kumar for R-2.
*Arunima Bose, Editorial Assistant has reported this brief.