The returned income of the assessee was proposed to be subjected to variations prejudicial to the interests of the assessee under section 144C. There was a change of address and assessee had intimated the new address to the Assessing Officer vide letter dated 25.05.2018. The Assessing Officer had passed two draft assessment orders both dated 10.12.2018 under section 144C but both of these draft assessment orders contained the old address of the assessee. The short case of the assessee was that since the Assessing Officer did not forward the draft assessment order on or before the due date as is prescribed in the provisions of section 153 r.w.s. 144C, the impugned assessment order was time barred.

The Tribunal observed that there was no forwarding not even an effort to forward the draft assessment order to the new address furnished to the Assessing Officer under proviso to Rule 127(2) within the permitted time frame under section 153 r.w.s. 144C. The impugned assessment order was thus barred by limitation. Accordingly, the Tribunal held that the impugned assessment fails for this short reason alone and the impugned assessment order was quashed.  (AY. 2015-16)