Aashrya Developers Private Limited Vs ACIT (ITAT Delhi)
In Aashrya Developers Private Limited Vs ACIT, the appeals were filed against orders passed under Section 250(6) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for Assessment Years 2011–12, 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2015–16. The primary issue concerned the validity of jurisdiction assumed under Section 153C following a search conducted on 21.07.2016 in the M3M Group. A satisfaction note was recorded on 25.09.2018 alleging that seized material (Annexure A-3) contained information relating to the assessee.
For AY 2011–12, the assessee contended that the proceedings were barred by limitation since the relevant six-year period, computed from the date of the satisfaction note, ended with AY 2012–13. The Tribunal accepted this contention and held that AY 2011–12 fell outside the permissible limitation period, rendering the assessment order void and non est in law.
For AYs 2012–13, 2013–14, and 2015–16, although within limitation, the Tribunal examined the validity of the satisfaction note. It found that the note was vague, non-descriptive, and recorded in a consolidated manner for multiple years without identifying specific incriminating material for each assessment year or quantifying undisclosed income. The Tribunal observed that no seized material was linked to particular years and that the satisfaction note lacked necessary particulars such as nature of documents, transaction details, or relevance to specific assessment years.
