Simply uploading a notice on the assessee’s e-Portal by the Income Tax Department does not meet the requirements of proper service
There are lot many cases wherein ex-parte order is passed for the reason that assessee didn’t reply to the notices over the income tax portal. Very often is has happened that Assessee was not at all aware of any such proceeding also. No effort is done in such case by the department to issue the physical notice or email or SMS to the assessee.
The Chandigarh Bench of the ITAT in the case of Sant Kabir Mahasabha v CIT (E),[ ITA No 84/CHD/2023] has held that simply uploading a notice on the assessee’s e-Portal by the Income Tax Department does not meet the requirements of proper service as outlined in the Income Tax Act and emphasized that serving a notice on the portal alone, without adhering to Section 282 of the Income Tax Act, is not considered valid. Consequently, the tribunal remanded the matter for a fresh consideration.
In this case, the assessee’s challenge to the CIT (E)’s decision to reject their application for registration under Section 12AB of the Income Tax Act, 1961 as an ex-party without affording the assessee an opportunity for a hearing. Furthermore, the CIT (E) did not provide any notice regarding the hearing date through traditional means such as physical mail or email. Instead, the notice of the hearing date was allegedly only uploaded on the Income Tax Portal, and the assessee was unaware of this notice being uploaded. In essence, there was no actual service of the notice on the assessee.
The ITAT has set aside the order with a direction to the ld. CIT(E) to decide the appeal of the assessee afresh after giving proper and adequate opportunity to the assessee to present its case. The ld. CIT (E) will serve notice of hearing through physical mode as well as through electronic mode upon the assessee.
The case detail is as under:
Sant Kabir Mahasabha
Vs.
CIT (E),
[84/CHD/2023]
The copy of the order is as under: ITAT
