Mishra Ganesha Ram Vs DCIT (ITAT Mumbai)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Mumbai, considered the assessee’s appeals against the common order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals)/National Faceless Appeal Centre dated 01.09.2025 for Assessment Years 2019-20 and 2020-21. The principal issue was the validity of additions made under Section 69 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, on the basis of search material recovered from the Rubberwala Group in proceedings initiated under Section 153C.
The proceedings arose from a search conducted under Section 132 on 17.03.2021 in the case of the Rubberwala Group, including M/s. Rubberwala Housing & Infrastructure Ltd. During the search, the Revenue alleged that the assessee had purchased a shop in “Platinum Mall”, Mumbai, and had paid cash of Rs.30,78,653 over and above the recorded consideration, comprising Rs.30,37,050 in Assessment Year 2019-20 and Rs.41,603 in Assessment Year 2020-21. The allegation was based on statements of Shri Imran Ansari, an employee of the Rubberwala Group, and data allegedly contained in a 16 GB pen drive recovered from his residence, which purportedly recorded cash components received from purchasers of shops.
The Assessing Officer relied upon the statements of Shri Imran Ansari and other persons connected with the Rubberwala Group, as well as the Excel sheets allegedly found in the pen drive, to conclude that the assessee had made unexplained cash investments. The assessee denied having made any cash payment, disputed any knowledge of the persons whose statements were relied upon, asserted that the property had been purchased jointly and that his share could not exceed one-third, and specifically requested copies of the statements, incriminating material and an opportunity to cross-examine the persons concerned. These requests were not accepted. The Assessing Officer nevertheless made additions under Section 69, while the Commissioner (Appeals) restricted the additions to the assessee’s one-third share, resulting in sustained additions of Rs.10,12,350 for Assessment Year 2019-20 and Rs.13,868 for Assessment Year 2020-21.
