N.H. Kapadia Education Trust v. ACIT (2020) 190 DTR 184 (Guj) (HC)

S. 147 : Reassessment – Charitable Trust- Corpus donation – Change of opinion- No new facts – Reassessment is held to be bad in law [ S. 2(15) 11, 12A , 148 Art , 226 ]

Allowing the petition the Court hedl taht the assessee had placed all the material before the Assessing Officer and where there was a doubt, even that was clarified by the assessee in its letter dated November 8, 1995. If the Assessing Officer, while passing the original assessment order, chose not to give any finding in this regard, that cannot give him or his successor in office a reason to reopen the assessment of the assessee or to contend that because the facts were not considered in the assessment order, a full and true disclosure was not made. Since the facts were before the Assessing Officer at the time of framing the original assessment, and later a different view was taken by him or his successor on the same facts, it clearly amounts to a change of opinion. This cannot form the basis for permitting the Assessing Officer or his successor to reopen the assessment of the assessee. (AY. 2006-07