📰 𝗔𝗻𝗱𝗵𝗿𝗮 𝗣𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗵 𝗛𝗶𝗴𝗵 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴: 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗢𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗱 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗲-𝗦𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗖𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 📢 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗱, "It is a trite law that whenever any ambiguity arises with regard to any provision, the benefit must go to the taxpayer."

🔍 𝗙𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀: 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲: 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝘃𝘀 𝗗𝗲𝗽𝘂𝘁𝘆 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗲𝗿 (𝗦𝗧) 𝗖𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁: Andhra Pradesh High Court 𝗖𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗡𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿: Writ Petition No. 12850 of 2022 𝗗𝗮𝘁𝗲: 12-Oct-2023

𝗜𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲: The Andhra Pradesh High Court set aside a Demand Order issued under Section 74, as the officer failed to issue a DRC-01A (Pre-Show Cause Consultation) for a period before the amendment to Rule 142(1A). The court noted that the use of the word "shall" in the rule made this consultation mandatory.

𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀: The court emphasized the principle that any ambiguity in the law should favor the taxpayer. It highlighted the mandatory nature of procedural compliance in taxation matters and criticized the failure to adhere to the pre-amended Rule 142(1A), rendering the assessment order invalid.

⚖ 𝗝𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁: The oversight in following the due procedure made the demand order invalid. The ruling underscores the importance of procedural laws in the tax domain and serves as a reminder that deviation from due process can have significant legal consequences.

📜 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 the necessity for taxpayers to be well-informed about their rights and the laws governing them, ensuring they are not disadvantaged by procedural lapses. 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗺 𝗚𝗦𝗧𝗽𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗮 📞 7503031378