Shirish Chandrakant Shah Vs DCIT (ITAT Mumbai)
The Mumbai ITAT partly allowed appeals filed by the assessee for AYs 2013-14 to 2018-19 arising from assessments under Section 143(3) read with Section 153C of the Income-tax Act, 1961. For AY 2013-14, the Assessing Officer had initiated Section 153C proceedings following a search in the case of Shri Naresh Manakchand Jain, alleging that incriminating documents pertaining to the assessee had been found. The assessee challenged the jurisdiction under Section 153C, absence of satisfaction notes, approval under Section 153D, and additions based on accommodation-entry transactions. The Assessing Officer had made commission additions by applying a 1.75% rate to transactions allegedly facilitated through conduit entities, including M/s Secunderabad Healthcare Ltd., M/s L.N.Polyesters Ltd., M/s Lakeview Land Private Ltd. and M/s Sally Real Estate Pvt Ltd.
Before the Tribunal, the assessee argued that the jurisdictional requirements under Section 153C had not been fulfilled and that the additions were not based on incriminating documents seized during the search of Shri Naresh Manakchand Jain. Reliance was placed on Abhisar Buildwell Pvt. Ltd. (149 Taxmann.com 399) and U.K.Paints (Overseas) Ltd. (150 Taxmann.com 108). The assessee also sought application of the 0.47% commission rate adopted by the Tribunal in its own case for AYs 2015-16 to 2018-19.
