All orders in ‘E-Proceedings’ must be signed digitally: Manually signed Assessment Order held invalid by ITAT
The assessee challenged the validity of the Final Assessment Order, which was signed manually by the Assessing Officer despite being conducted under the ‘E-Proceedings’ system.
The Tribunal referred to CBDT Instruction No. 01/2018, which mandates that all orders in ‘E-Proceedings’ must be signed digitally. Since the assessment order was signed manually, the Tribunal held it invalid and quashed it.
It would be worthwhile to review all orders (including TP Orders, Draft Orders etc) and take an additional ground in pending proceedings, if not already taken. On a Lighter Note this reminds famous dialogue by legendary Amitabh Bachan “Jaake uss aadmi ke sign lekar aao jisne………”.
That shall now translate into “Jaake uss aadmi ke Digital Signature lekar aao, jisne yeh order banaya”
The copy of the order is as under:
