Smt. Neetu Sharma Vs PCIT (Chhattisgarh High Court)
This tax appeal under Section 260A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 was admitted by the Chhattisgarh High Court to consider whether the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) was justified in sustaining additions toward alleged excess stock and excess cash based solely on a statement recorded during a survey under Section 133A of the Act.
The appellant, engaged in trading car accessories, was subjected to a survey under Section 133A on 3 March 2011. For Assessment Year 2011–12, she filed a return declaring an income of ₹13,37,110. During assessment proceedings, the Assessing Officer (AO) noted that, during the survey, the assessee had disclosed a total amount of ₹29,49,394 comprising excess cash of ₹3,40,009, excess stock of ₹16,09,385, and unexplained investment of ₹10,00,000. The assessee later retracted the statement made during the survey and did not offer the disclosed excess cash and stock to tax.
The AO completed the assessment under Section 143(3) on 18 March 2014, making additions aggregating ₹32,81,100. The assessee’s appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) was dismissed, and the ITAT also upheld the additions. Aggrieved, the assessee approached the High Court challenging the legality and correctness of the ITAT’s order.
