Supreme Court directs listing of Sonia Gandhi's & AAP's cases on 'faceless assessment' in 1st week of August SC directs listing of batch of SLPs challenging Delhi HC ruling against Mrs. Sonia Gandhi, Aam Aadmi Party and others in the first week of Aug'23

Delhi HC, in the impugned judgment, held "no assessee has any fundamental or vested legal right" to be assessed by a Faceless Assessing Officer" while upholding the transfer of cases to Central Circle

Delhi HC observed that neither the e-Assessment nor the Faceless Assessment Scheme modified the power to transfer cases from one AO under a PCIT to another AO under another PCIT holding non-concurrent charges

Also rejected Assessees' submission that after Faceless Assessment Scheme and Notifications thereunder, transfer is a two-step process i.e. from Faceless AO to jurisdictional AO and then from jurisdictional AO to the transferee AO

The matter is before a Three Judge Bench of the Supreme Court comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna, Justice Bela M. Trivedi and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan.

Delhi High Court in the case of Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Trust Vs Commissioner Of Income Tax (Exemption) [W.P.(C) 3535/2021 & CM APPL. 10693/2021 dated 26-May-2023] has held that Faceless assessment, neither fundamental nor vested right; Upholds 'case-transfer' of Gandhis & AAP.

HC categorically opines "no assessee has any fundamental or vested legal right" to be assessed by a Faceless Assessing Officer" by virtue of amendment of Sections 143(3A) and 143(3B) as Section 143(3A) stipulates that

the Central Government ‘may make a Scheme’ to eliminate the interface between the AO and the assessee which implies that the Central Government had the discretion to frame or not to frame a Faceless Assessment Scheme