Advocates:
['T PRAMOD KUMAR CHOPDA', '', 'ARJUN KK', 'POOJA CHOPDA', 'HARSHIKA', 'P PRITHVI CHOPDA', 'M/S HEMA MURALIKRISHNAN', '', 'VIDE COURT ORDER DATED', 'TAKES NOTICE']

IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT MADRAS

DATED: 30.03.2022

CORAM

THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE R. MAHADEVAN

AND

THE HONOURABLE MR.JUSTICE J.SATHYA NARAYANA PRASAD

W.A. No. 485 of 2022

and

C.M.P. No. 3516 of 2022

Nisha Nandakumar

Legal heir and wife of late Krishnan Nandakumar

10-A, Old No.14-A, Masilamani Street,

T.Nagar, Chennai 600 017

Tamil Nadu, India.

.. Appellant

Versus

1.Additional/Joint/Deputy/Assistant Commissioner

of Income Tax/Income Tax Officer,

National Faceless Assessment Centre,

New Delhi.

2.The Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax,

Non Corporate Circle7(1),

121, M.G.Road, Nungambakkam,

Chennai – 600 034.

.. Respondents

Prayer: Writ Appeal filed under Clause 15 of Letters Patent

against the order passed by this Court in W.P. No. 104 of 2022,

dated 06.01.2022.

Prayer in W.P. No. 104 of 2022 : Writ Petition filed under

Article 226 of the Constitution of India to issue a Writ of

Certiorarified mandamus calling for the records on the file of

the first respondent passed in impugned assessment order dated

21.09.2021 in PAN AAEPN5577B in ITBA/AST/S/143(3)/2021-

2022/1035763790(1) under Section 143(3) read with Section 144B

of Income Tax Act for the Assessment Year 2019-2020 and

consequential notice for penalty under Section 270A dated

06.10.2021 in PAN AAEPN5577B in ITBA/PNL/F/270A/2021-

2022/1036192206(1) and quash the same as illegal, nullity, non-

est in law and against the principles of natural justice and

fair play and direct the second respondent not to proceed in

pursuance to notice under Section 221(1) dated 16.12.2021 in PAN

AAEPN5577B in ITBA/RCV/S/221/2021-2022/1037865866(1).

https://hcservices.ecourts.gov.in/hcservices/

For Appellant : Mr.T.Pramodkumar Chopda

For Respondents: Mrs.Hema Murali Krishnan

Senior Panel Counsel

JUDGMENT

[Judgment of the court was delivered by R.MAHADEVAN,J.]

"Nothing is certain except death and taxes. Thus spake

Benjamin Franklin in his letter of 13th Nov., 1789 to Jean

Baptiste Leroy. To tax the dead is a contradiction in terms. Tax

laws are made by the living to tax the living. What survives the

dead person is what is left behind in the form of such person's

property" [Refer: Shabina Abraham & Ors. vs. Collector of Central

Excise & Customs MANU/SC/0801/2015 : (2015) 10 SCC 770].

1.

The aforesaid observations of the Hon'ble Supreme Court are

aptly quoted by us, as the same are squarely applicable to the

facts of the present case, wherein the respondents / Revenue

proceeded with the assessment and passed the faceless assessment

order against a dead person, who was the appellant's husband.

2.

This Writ Appeal is directed against the order dated

06.01.2022 passed by the learned Judge in W.P. No. 104 of 2022.

3.

According to the appellant, her husband late Krishnan

Nandakumar was carrying on proprietorship business in the name

and style of M/s.Elektronik Lab. He filed his return of income

for the assessment year 2019-2020 on 28.09.2019 disclosing the

loss of Rs.88,79,838/- and claiming a refund of Rs.10,56,140/-

representing tax deducted at source. Upon scrutiny of the same,

the first respondent issued a notice under section 143(2) of the

Income Tax Act (in short, “the Act”) dated 31.03.2021. After

receipt of the same, he was affected by Covid-19 and passed away

on 09.05.2021. Subsequently, another notice dated 08.06.2021 came

to be issued by the first respondent calling for certain details

through e-portal and the same was followed by notice under

section 142(1) of the Act dated 06.08.2021. The petitioner

further averred that even her husband's chartered accountant was

affected by Covid-19 during that time, no reply was sent to the

said notices, which resulted in issuance of show cause notice

under section 144 dated 15.09.2021. Thereafter, the chartered

accountant of the petitioner's husband sent a letter dated

17.09.2021 and up