PCIT (Central) Vs Deepak Kumar Aggarwal (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court dismissed the Revenue’s appeal and upheld the view that, for proceedings under Section 153C of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the six-year limitation period must be reckoned from the date on which seized documents are handed over to the Assessing Officer (AO) of the “other person,” and not from the date of search.
In the present case, a search under Section 132 was conducted on 02.11.2017 at the premises of a third party. During the search, documents pertaining to the assessee were found. The AO of the searched person recorded satisfaction and handed over the seized documents to the AO of the assessee on 24.06.2021. On the same date, the AO of the assessee recorded satisfaction under Section 153C and issued notice. The assessment for Assessment Year 2013-14 was completed on 31.12.2022 with additions.
On appeal, the Commissioner (Appeals) allowed the assessee’s claim, holding that the assessment year was outside the permissible six-year period, relying on earlier judicial precedents. The Tribunal affirmed this view, observing that under Section 153C, the date of handing over of seized material and recording of satisfaction is deemed to be the relevant date for computing the six assessment years. Accordingly, only assessment years from 2016-17 to 2021-22 could be covered, and Assessment Year 2013-14 fell outside the scope of Section 153C.
