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Terming the reassessment proceedings "arbitrary" and against cardinal and law rights, the Delhi High Court connected Monday (January 19, 2026) quashed the 2016 income taxation notices to NDTV founders Prannoy Roy and Radhika Roy and asked the section to wage ₹1 lakh to each of them arsenic token cost.
A Bench of Justices Dinesh Mehta and Vinod Kumar observed that authorities subjecting Mr. Prannoy Roy and Ms. Radhika Roy to reassessment proceedings for the 2nd clip for the aforesaid transaction and "practically for the aforesaid issue" was without jurisdiction.
The tribunal further said initiation of the proceedings leads to unnecessary harassment connected 1 manus and gives emergence to unpredictability and uncertainty, if not anarchy, connected the other.
"The facts of the contiguous lawsuit talk volumes arsenic to however the proceedings are arbitrary and contrary to the statutory provisions, too being against the cardinal principles of adjudicatory process," the Bench said, allowing the petitions of the Roys.
"Impugned notice(s) dated 31.03.2016 issued to the petitioner(s), truthful besides immoderate consequential order(s) oregon proceedings pursuant thereto are quashed. No magnitude of outgo tin beryllium treated capable for these cases, however, we cannot permission these cases without imposing any. Hence, we enforce a token outgo of ₹1,00,000 per lawsuit upon the respondents to beryllium paid to each of the petitioners," ordered the court.
‘Interest-free’ loans
The income taxation announcement pertained to the reassessment of the petitioners' income for the twelvemonth 2009-10 connected relationship of definite "interest-free" loans received by them from RRPR Holding Private Limited, the promoter entity of NDTV.
The petitioners were past shareholders and directors of RRPR.
The archetypal circular of reassessment proceedings were initiated successful 2011 and ended successful 2013.
On March 31, 2016, notices were issued for reassessment again connected the ground of a complaint.
The proceedings earlier the assessing serviceman were stayed by the High Court successful 2017.
In the judgment, the tribunal observed that nary caller information was revealed by the "so called complaint" and the assessing serviceman was alert of the facts erstwhile the bid was passed successful 2013.
It said the existent lawsuit had not made immoderate summation to the factual backdrop of the issue.
"Specific contented successful narration to the indebtedness received by the petitioner from RRPR had been raised, books of accounts of RRPR had been summoned/examined, and mentation was sought from the petitioner. No summation was made," the tribunal stated.
"The respondents cannot justifiably trigger the proceedings nether Section 147/148 of the (Income Tax) Act of 1961 each implicit again. Hurling the reassessment proceedings successful specified a concern hits the precise basal of just adjudicatory process. Initiation of reassessment proceedings successful specified circumstances leads to unnecessary harassment of an assessee connected the 1 manus and gives emergence to unpredictability/uncertainty, if not anarchy, connected the other," it added.
The tribunal held that the reassessment proceedings fell foul of cardinal and law rights guaranteed nether Article 14 (right to equality), Article 19(1)(g) (Freedom to Practice Profession, Occupation, Trade oregon Business) and Article 300A (Persons not to beryllium deprived of spot prevention by authorization of law) of the Constitution of India.
