Alok Keswani Vs ITO (ITAT Raipur)
In a case concerning unexplained cash deposits, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Raipur Bench, has partially allowed an appeal by Alok Keswani, directing the Assessing Officer (AO) to re-examine the addition made under Section 68 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The case, Alok Keswani Vs ITO, for the assessment year 2011-12, centered on cash aggregating to Rs. 13,45,800 deposited in two savings bank accounts.
The genesis of the dispute lies in the assessee’s failure to file a return of income despite significant cash deposits in his bank accounts. The AO, noting a cash deposit of Rs. 13.05 Lacs in one Axis Bank account, initiated reassessment proceedings under Section 147. As the assessee did not respond to the notice issued under Section 148, the AO completed the assessment ex-parte under Section 144 read with Section 147, treating the entire cash deposit of Rs. 13,45,800 across two joint bank accounts, along with corresponding interest income of Rs. 1,389, as unexplained cash credits under Section 68 of the Act.
Aggrieved, the assessee appealed to the Commissioner of Income-Tax (Appeals) [CIT(A)], National Faceless Appeal Center (NFAC), Delhi. Before the CIT(A), the assessee attempted to introduce evidence not submitted during the assessment proceedings. This included the claim that one of the joint bank accounts (holding Rs. 13,05,000 in deposits) was primarily operated by his father, Shri Devidas Ramchand Keshwani, and that his father had disclosed this bank account, including the interest income, in his own return of income for the same assessment year.
