Aabid Ali Khan Vs ACIT (ITAT Delhi)
ITAT Delhi Rejects Story of 17 Contributors—Cash Seizure Addition of ₹80.42 Lakh Upheld as Humanly Improbable
Assessee appealed against the order of CIT(A sustaining an addition of ₹80,42,100 u/s 69A relating to cash seized by the UP Police from two individuals who claimed the money belonged to Assessee. Assessee explained that he had collected ₹80.42 lakh from 17 relatives & friends to jointly purchase a property in Lucknow, & when the deal failed, the money was being transported back to Delhi. Affidavits, bank statements & details of contributors were filed. Assessee also relied on an earlier Criminal Court observation that the money was not connected with any offence.
Tribunal examined the criminal court orders, the seizure circumstances, & the explanation offered. The police had seized cash along with contraband and recorded statements alleging drug-related activities. Though Assessee was not an accused, the Criminal Court did not accept his ownership claim and instead directed the cash to be deposited with the Income-tax Department. Tribunal found that there was nothing on record to prove that all 17 persons genuinely contributed the stated amounts. Invoking Section 114 of the Evidence Act (now s.119 of BSA 2023), the Tribunal held that human conduct & natural probabilities must guide evaluation of evidence. The claim that 17 persons pooled ₹80.42 lakh in cash for a land deal, sent it with unrelated persons in a bus, & that all contributors filed affidavits without corroboration, was held to be “dehors human probabilities.” The explanation did not inspire confidence.
