Uday Punj Vs DCIT (ITAT Delhi)
ITAT Delhi quashed the reassessment proceedings initiated against Uday Punj, holding that the reopening was invalid being based on a mere change of opinion. Assessee had originally filed his return declaring income of ₹43.04 lakh, which was assessed u/s 143(3) at ₹63.40 lakh. In that assessment, AO had examined the issue of set-off of speculative losses from AY 2007-08/2008-09 against current short-term capital gains, & accepted Assessee’s explanation.
Subsequently, AO reopened the case u/s 147/148 alleging that the earlier loss was speculative & wrongly set off against non-speculative gains. CIT(A) confirmed the reopening.
Before the Tribunal, Assessee argued that the issue was thoroughly examined in the original scrutiny proceedings & that reopening on the same material constituted a prohibited review, relying on CIT v. Kelvinator of India Ltd. (320 ITR 561, SC) & Usha International Ltd. (348 ITR 485, Del HC).
Tribunal noted that AO had raised a specific query on the issue during the original assessment & accepted Assessee’s explanation after verification. No new or tangible material had surfaced subsequently to justify reopening. It held that reassessment based on reappraisal of the same facts is barred by the doctrine of “change of opinion”.
