Section 292B of the Income Tax Act
The decision most relied on for Section 292B is Commissioner of Customs v. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (267 ITR 272), cited in 501 of the 244 judgments on BharatTax that turn on this section.
Leading authorities on Section 292B
CBDT and CBEC circulars, along with administrative instructions, are binding on departmental authorities, who must not act in contravention of them. However, these circulars and instructions are not binding on courts or assessees.
An assessment order framed against a company that has ceased to exist due to amalgamation is invalid and non-est in law. Jurisdictional issues concerning the assessment of a non-existent entity can be raised as an additional ground before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal.
An assessment order passed against an amalgamating company (transferor company) after its cessation due to amalgamation is invalid and void ab initio, as the entity no longer exists in the eyes of law.
There is no legal requirement for a legal representative to report an assessee's death to the income tax department; consequently, a reassessment notice issued under Section 148 to a deceased person is invalid as it lacks proper jurisdiction.
Upon amalgamation, the amalgamating company ceases to exist in the eyes of the law. Therefore, any assessment or proceeding initiated against a non-existent amalgamating company is invalid as it is no longer considered a 'person' under the Income-tax Act.
Section 292B of the Income Tax Act applies only to procedural irregularities and cannot cure fundamental jurisdictional defects, such as the non-issue of a mandatory Section 148 notice for reassessment or framing an assessment against a non-existing or dead person.
CBDT administrative instructions and circulars are binding on income tax authorities and departmental officers, who must follow them during the assessment process and cannot act in contravention, even though these instructions are not binding on courts or assessees.
An assessment framed by the Assessing Officer in the name of a defunct transferor company is valid if the assessee failed to intimate the AO about the merger or amalgamation.
Judgments on Section 292B
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