Rajiv Agarwal Vs ACIT (ITAT Delhi)
ITAT Delhi held that orders passed based on illegal assumption of jurisdiction on the basis of satisfaction note which was recorded without application of mind and quite in a mechanical manner is liable to be set aside. Accordingly, addition deleted.
Facts- A search and seizure action u/s 132(1) of the Act was carried out on 28.06.2016 in Paras Mal Lodha Group of cases. The assessment orders u/s 153A of the Act were passed in the case of Sh. Paras Mal Lodha, an alleged Hawala Operator in December 2019. A satisfaction note was recorded by the AO of the searched person on 02.12.2020 and books of account or seized documents purportedly pertaining to the assessee were received by the Jurisdictional AO of the assessee on 02.03.2021. Thereafter, satisfaction note for issuance of the notice u/s 153C of the Act was recorded by the AO of the assessee on 17.06.2021.
Notice u/s 153C of the Act for the impugned assessment year was issued to the assessee on 17.06.2021 against which the return of income was filed by the assessee on 15.07.2021 declaring the same income as was declared in the original return of income. Thereafter, notices u/s 143(2) and 142(1) fo the Act were issued which were responded to from time to time. The impugned assessment order was passed u/s 153C r.w.s 153 A of the Act on 31.12.2021, wherein the AO based on the loose sheets referred to in the satisfaction note made the various additions aggregating to Rs 1,19,70,896/- u/s 69A of the Act, alleging the same as unexplained money routed through Sh. Paras Mal Lodha.
