- 1 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 IN THE HIGH COURT OF KARNATAKA AT BENGALURU DATED THIS THE 7TH DAY OF NOVEMBER, 2025 BEFORE THE HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR WRIT PETITION NO. 32974 OF 2025 (T-IT) BETWEEN: MANGALA SRINIVAS W/O. SRI. B.K. SRINIVASA,R/A NO.1473, BEML LAYOUT, 5TH STAGE RAJARAJESHWARINAGAR, BENGALURU- 560098. PAN BAEPS0572G …PETITIONER (BY SRI. PRAKYAT J.S., AND SMT. JYOTI NAGI, ADVOCATES ) AND: 1. UNION OF INDIA THROUGH THE SECRETARY, DEPARTMENT OF REVENUE, THE CENTRAL BOARD OF DIRECT TAXES CBDT, MINISTRY OF FINANCE, NORTH BLOCK, NEW DELHI – 110 001 2. INCOME TAX OFFICER WARD 6(2)(1), BMTC BUILDING, 80 FEET ROAD, 6TH BLOCK, NEAR KHB GAMES VILLAGE, KORAMANGALA, BENGALURU, KARNATAKA – 560 095 3. PRINCIPAL CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX KARNATAKA & GOA REGION, QUEEN’S ROAD, BENGALURU, KARNATAKA – 560 001. 4. NATIONAL FACELESS ASSESSMENT CENTRE (NAFAC) THROUGH PRINCIPAL CHIEF COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, MAYUR BHAWAN, NEW DELHI – 110 001 …RESPONDENTS (BY SRI. E.I. SANMATHI, ADVOCATE) Digitally signed by CHANDANA B M Location: High Court of Karnataka - 2 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 THIS W.P. IS FILED UNDER ARTICLES 226 AND 227 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA PRAYING TO QUASH THE IMPUGNED NOTICE UNDER SECTION 148A(b) THE OF ACT DATED 27-01-2023 (DIN AND NOTICE NO. ITBA/AST/F/148A(SCN)/2022-23/1049200001(1) (ANNEXURE- A), ISSUED BY RESPONDENT NO. 2 AND ETC., THIS PETITION, COMING ON FOR PRELIMINARY HEARING, THIS DAY, ORDER WAS MADE THEREIN AS UNDER: CORAM: HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR ORAL ORDER In this petition, petitioner seeks for the following reliefs:- “(a) Issuance of a Writ in the nature of Certiorari, or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, quashing the impugned Notice under Section 148A(b) of the Act dated 27-01-2023 (DIN & Notice No:ITBA/AST/F/ 14BA(SCN)/2022-23/1049200001(1)) (Annexure - A), issued by Respondent No. 2; (b) Issuance of a Writ in the nature of Certiorari, or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, quashing the impugned Order under Section 148A(d) of the Act dated 24-03-2023 (DIN & Notice No: ITBA/AST/F/ 148A/2022-23/1051255372(1)) (Annexure B), issued by Respondent No. 2; (c) Issuance of a Writ in the nature of Certiorari, or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, quashing the impugned Notice under Section 148 of the Act dated 24-03-2023 Notice (DIN & Notice No.ITBA/AST/ S/148_1/2022-23/1051255897(1)) (Annexure C), issued by Respondent No. 2; - 3 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 (d) Issuance of a Writ in the nature of Certiorari, or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, quashing the entire proceedings consequent thereto, including the Assessment Order under Section 147 r.w.s. 144/144B dated 23-01-2024 (Annexure D) (DIN: ITBA/AST/S/147/2023-24/1060046795(1)), as being void ab initio and non-est in law; (e) Issuance of a Writ of Mandamus, or any other appropriate writ, order, or direction, directing the Ld. Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) before whom the Petitioner's appeal (Acknowledgement No. 418677130020924, filed vide Form 35 dated 02.09.2024 (Annexure E) is pending against the Assessment Order dated 23.01.2024 for AY 2016-17, to decide the jurisdictional ground challenging the validity of the notice u/s 148 dated 24.03.2023 (Annexure C) in terms of the binding judgment of this Hon'ble Court in Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar V. DCIT (Annexure G) and other relevant precedents, as a preliminary issue, preferably within a time-bound manner; (f) Issuance of an interim order staying all further proceedings, including any recovery or penalty proceedings, pursuant to the impugned Assessment Order dated 23-01-2024 (Annexure D), during the pendency of the present writ petition; - 4 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 (g) Issue any other writ, order, or direction as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case; (h) Award the costs of this petition to the Petitioner. (i) dispense with the filing of typed and certified copies of Annexures A to J; (j) dispense with the service of advance notices to the respondents; (k) allow the petition with costs.” 2. Heard learned counsel for the petitioner and learned counsel for the respondents and perused the material on record. 3. In addition to reiterating the various contentions urged in the memorandum of petition and referring to the material on record, learned counsel for the petitioner invited my attention to the order of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025, in order to contend that the present petition deserves to be allowed and disposed of in terms of the said order. - 5 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 4. Per contra, learned counsel for the respondents submits that there is no merit in the petition and that the same is liable to be dismissed. 5. As rightly contended by the learned counsel for the petitioner the present petition is directly and squarely covered by the decision of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025, the operative portion of which reads as under: "13. I, therefore, pass the following: O R D E R (i) The impugned show cause notices issued by the jurisdictional Assessing Officer outside the scope of Section 151-A of the Act stand obliterated. All further proceedings initiated thereto, challenged in these cases would stand quashed. (ii) Liberty is reserved to the respondents - revenue to revive all these petitions in the event the Apex Court would hold in favour of the Revenue in the pending before it. (iii) With the aforesaid liberty and to the aforesaid extent, the petitions are allowed. - 6 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 (iv) Contentions of both the parties except the one noted hereinabove, shall remain open to be considered in the event revival of these petitions would become necessary." 6. The aforesaid order is applicable to the facts and circumstances of the instant case and consequently, the present petition also deserves to be disposed of in terms of the judgment of co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Ramachandra Reddy's case supra. 7. An undertaking given on behalf of the petitioner that the appeal would be unconditionally withdrawn is placed on record. 8. In the result, I pass the following: ORDER (i) The petition is allowed and disposed of in terms of the decision of a Co-ordinate Bench of this Court in the case of Ramachandra Reddy Ravi Kumar Vs. Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax - W.P.No.17352/2022 and connected matters - dated 28.08.2025. (ii) The impugned show cause notices and consequential orders, notices etc., at Annexures- A, B, C, D, E dated 27.01.2023, 24.03.2023, - 7 - HC-KAR NC: 2025:KHC:45452 WP No. 32974 of 2025 24.03.2023, 23.01.2024 and 02.09.2024 respectively are hereby quashed. (iii) Liberty is reserved in favour of the respondents - Revenue to seek revival of this petition, subsequent to disposal of the matters pending before the Apex Court and all rival contentions between the parties in this regard are kept open and no opinion is expressed on the same. Sd/- (S.R.KRISHNA KUMAR) JUDGE MDS List No.: 4 Sl No.: 1