Law firm Baker McKenzie lays off hundreds of employees as AI takes on more tasks
https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/law-firm-lays-off-hundreds-of-employees-as-ai-takes-on-more-tasks-2865932-2026-02-10

For the purpose of treating an asset being office premises as a part of the ‘block of assets’, it is not necessary that the possession of the office premises should have been given to the assessee. Once payment is made and there is a registered agreement, the office premises acquired during the year could be treated as part of the ‘block of assets’ and the said block cannot be regarded as empty for invoking section 50 of the Act. N K Gems v. ITO (ITAT Mumbai) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/n-k-gems-v-ito-itat-mumbai/

Where audit report in Form No. 10B was already filed and available on record, when assessee’s return was processed by CPC, denial of exemption under section 11 merely on account of alleged belated filing of Form No. 10B, was not justifiable. Further the learned CIT(Appeals) erred in declining to condone the delay of 1021 days and in dismissing the appeal in limine without appreciating that the underlying adjustment itself ran contrary to binding judicial precedents and that Form No. 10B had been filed and was available at the time of processing of the return

Vishva Kalyan Foundation vs ITO (ITAT Ahmedabad)

https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/vishva-kalyan-foundation-vs-ito-itat-ahmedabad/

Section 153A and section 148/147 cannot be initiated for the search year.The Assessee can only be assessed u/s 143(3)for the search year.

ARJUN SINGH SAHI VS DCIT/ACIT CENTRE CIRCLE (ITAT DEHRADUN)

https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/arjun-singh-sahi-vs-dcit-acit-centre-circle-itat-dehradun/

S. 11 : Property held for charitable purposes-CSR Contributions- Tied-up Grants-CSR contributions received by a charitable trust as an implementing agency, with specific donor restrictions and monitoring, are in the nature of tied-up grants- Delay in filing Form 10 for accumulation is a technical lapse, and where bona fide hardship is shown, such delay deserves condonation in the interest of substantial justice- The Tribunal directed the assessee to seek CBDT condonation and remitted the matter to the AO for fresh consideration. [S. 2(24)(iia), Form No 10.]

JM Financial Foundation v. ITO (Ex) (ITAT Mumbai) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/jm-financial-foundation-v-ito-ex-itat-mumbai/

S. 148A : Reassessment-Conducting inquiry, providing opportunity before issue of notice-Reassessment notice issued after 29.03.2022 by Jurisdictional AO instead of Faceless AO is without jurisdiction and void ab initio-DRP cannot ignore binding jurisdictional High Court ruling in Hexaware Technologies Ltd-Refusal to follow jurisdictional precedent is impermissible-the Court also cautioned the tax authorities that continued disregard of binding jurisdictional precedents may invite contempt action. [S. 144C, 147, 148, 151A, Art. 226].

Vibhavari Bharat Bhatt v. ITO (Intl.) (Bombay High Court) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/vibhavari-bharat-bhatt-v-ito-intl-bombay-high-court/

Hon’ble Delhi ITAT held that mechanical approval cannot be sustainable in law in the light of judicial dicta available. The approval memo is totally silent on the issues involved and has granted omnibus approval without any thoughtful process being discernible. A single approval u/s 153D has been accorded in respect of Three assessment years and there is no other material to show involvement of the superior authority in the course of assessment proceedings. Thus, applying the ratio of judgements delivered as noted above, the assessment order based on ritualistic approval stands vitiated.

Gaurav Kathuria vs ACIT (ITAT Delhi) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/gaurav-kathuria-vs-acit-itat-delhi/

Reassessment proceedings Section 147 –
Where notice under section 148 was issued not only in contravention of provisions of section 151 as sanction of concerned Specified Authority as prescribed i.e PCCIT was not obtained, but same was also time-barred as per provisions of section 149 as same was issued after three years, therefore, impugned notice issued under section 148 being void ab initio was liable to be quashed.

Rohit Goel v. DCIT (ITAT Delhi) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/rohit-goel-v-dcit-itat-delhi/

Draft Income Tax rules sweeten the old regime a bit;
1) HRA in Pune, Blr etc hiked to 50% of basic
2) Employer Gifts up to 15k exempt (up from 5k)
3) Child Education up from Rs 100 to 3k a month
4) Hostel Allowance from Rs 300 to 9k a month
5) Free meals up to Rs 200 exempt https://x.com/ActusDei/status/2023241050538872963

🚨 Important Compliance Alert for All CAs & Professionals Filing AOC-4: Never upload financial statements with only “SD/-” appearing in place of actual signatures. 🚨

Recently, ICAI Disciplinary Committee has took serious note of a case where the Balance Sheet & Audit Report attached with Form AOC-4 did not bear original signatures of Directors & Statutory Auditor. Only an “SD/- copy” was filed on MCA portal.

The Committee held this as a clear violation of:
• Section 134(1) of Companies Act, 2013
• Rule 8 of Companies (Registration Offices & Fees) Rules, 2014

Rule 8 specifically mandates that:
➡️ Scanned documents must be of original signed financial statements
➡️ Attachments cannot be blank or unsigned
➡️ The professional certifying the form is responsible for correctness of enclosures

Even if the CA argues “it was a curable defect” or “instruction kit didn’t mention it”, the defence is NOT accepted.

ICAI observed that:
⚠️ A certifying professional is expected to exercise strict due diligence
⚠️ Oversight by staff is not an excuse
⚠️ Wrong / incomplete attachments can lead to professional misconduct

Result: Disciplinary action + Reprimand under Clause (7) of Part I of Second Schedule (Gross Negligence / Lack of Due Diligence).

Access full Order from here: https://disc.icai.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/86.-DC-1942-2024.pdf
Source: https://x.com/CAHimankSingla/status/2023586985785675901

Supreme Court flags "alarming" trend of AI being used for drafting petitions

If a particular ground was ‘conditionally not pressed’ by the Assessee before the CIT (A), the Assessee can raise that ground before the ITAT in Revenue’s appeal against the CIT (A)’s order. Dismissal of such a ground by the ITAT without adjudication constitutes a mistake apparent from the record and the order of the ITAT was liable to be recalled.

Ravi Sellappan v. DCIT, Pune (ITAT Pune) https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/ravi-sellappan-v-dcit-pune-itat-pune/

ITAT grants relief to Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi in ₹133 crore income assessment matter https://www.barandbench.com/news/litigation/itat-grants-relief-to-mukul-rohatgi-in-133-crore-income-assessment-matter

By analysing 60 terabytes of transactional data of a pan-India billing software used by more than one lakh restaurants, the Income Tax department's Hyderabad investigation unit has revealed that these eateries suppressed sales turnover worth at least Rs 70,000 crore since the 2019-20 financial year. https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/i-t-probe-into-hyd-biryani-joints-blows-lid-off-multi-crore-tax-evasion-scam-across-india/articleshow/128522871.cms

HUGE ICAI BREAKING: ICAI has found 11 Chartered Accountants from Ahmedabad guilty of professional misconduct in a matter linked to an alleged bogus political donation network that was earlier flagged by the Income Tax Department. Source: https://x.com/CAHimankSingla/status/2024396060555346101?s=20

S. 263 : Commissioner-Revision of orders prejudicial to revenue- Long-term capital gains on equity-oriented funds-Annual letting value of properties-Non-initiation of penalty proceedings-Where AO had examined the details and taken a possible view, revision was not justified. [S. 45, 112A, 14A, 23, 24(b), 143(3), 271C]

Shri Mukul Rohatgi v. PCIT (ITAT Delhi)

https://itatonline.org/digest/verdicts/shri-mukul-rohatgi-v-pcit/

ITC Reversal Under Rule 42 and 43: Why the GSTR-2B Auto-Reversal Formula Penalises Compliant Taxpayers for Vendor Defaults

By Adv. Aaditya Bhatt and Adv. Chandni Joshi

https://itatonline.org/digest/articles/itc-reversal-under-rule-42-and-43-why-the-gstr-2b-auto-reversal-formula-penalises-compliant-taxpayers-for-vendor-defaults/

Penalty u/s 271(1)(c) – Estimated Addition on Bogus Purchases ITAT Mumbai -Income Tax Officer, Ward 41(2)(2), Mumbaiv. In Coach Builders** ITA No. 7993/MUM/2025 ITAT Mumbai Bench Order dated: 18.02.2026 Assessment Year: 2009-10
https://x.com/caanupam7/status/2025122058552967462?s=20

UP potter selling Rs 2 clay pots gets Rs 1.2 crore GST notice. PAN and Aadhaar details were misused to commit fraud in his name. https://www.indiatoday.in/india/story/gst-notice-rs-125-crore-poor-potter-mohammad-saeed-raebareli-amid-suspected-identity-fraud-2872205-2026-02-21

⚖️ Big Legal Battle Ahead!

Bar Council of India (BCI) has challenged the appearance of CAs and other professionals before Tribunals like ITAT, GSTAT, NCLT, etc., in the Delhi High Court.

👉 This case could redefine who can represent taxpayers & corporates before tribunals.

Next Hearing: 16 March, 2026 Source: https://x.com/rambajajgst/status/2025805985852563787?s=20