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Delhi High Court Quashes 2016 Tax Reassessment Notices to NDTV Founders, Orders Costs

The bench held the second reopening for 2009–10 was an unlawful attempt to revisit issues settled in a 2013 reassessment.

Overview

  • A division bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar set aside the March 31, 2016 notices and nullified all consequential proceedings.
  • The court directed the Income Tax Department to pay ₹1 lakh each to Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy as token costs.
  • Judges ruled the reassessment bid amounted to a prohibited change of opinion, terming the action arbitrary, without jurisdiction, and violative of Articles 14, 19(1)(g) and 300A.
  • The notices concerned alleged interest-free loans involving promoter RRPR Holding, with officials earlier alleging a ₹403.85 crore loan and related share transfers as colourable transactions.
  • The Roys challenged the notices in 2017 and secured a stay; a detailed written judgment is awaited, and a similar notice to RRPR was quashed by a separate bench in September 2024.