HC quashes I-T notice against NDTV founders, slams Rs 2 lakh fine on tax department

The Delhi High Court has quashed the income tax reassessment notices issued to NDTV founders Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy in March 2016 over certain interest-free loans to NDTV promoter RRPR Holding, according to Bar and Bench. The court also told the tax department to pay a token cost of Rs 1 lakh to both of them.

A Division Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinok Kumar also quashed all proceedings that followed from these reassessment notices, according to Bar and Bench. A detailed judgment explaining the court’s reasoning is awaited.

The Roys approached the High Court in November 2017, arguing that the reassessment amounted to a second reopening of the same assessment year, which is not allowed under law.

They pointed out that the tax department had already reopened their assessment once in July 2011 and had examined the same issues in detail. That exercise ended with a reassessment order in March 2013. Reopening the matter again, they argued, was merely a “change of opinion”, which is held to be illegal, according to the report.

The petitioners also rejected the tax department’s claim that the earlier reassessment was limited in scope.

Last year, the Delhi High Court had told the CBI that it would be “futile” to continue with the Lookout Circulars issued against Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy.

The court was then hearing a petition by the Roys challenging the LOCs that were issued after the CBI lodged cases against them in 2017 and 2019. The 2017 case was closed citing insufficient evidence. The 2019 case pertained to alleged money laundering with the CBI accusing the Roys and others of “sham transactions” to bring “funds from abroad”. Though no chargesheet was filed in that case.

Watch this to understand what the CBI case was about and what it meant for the channel that is now controlled by the Adani Group.

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