CIT Vs Sant Lal (Delhi High Court)
The Delhi High Court considered an appeal filed by the Revenue under Section 260A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 against the order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) for Assessment Year 2002-03. The Tribunal had dismissed the Revenue’s appeal and affirmed the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) deleting additions made by the Assessing Officer.
The Revenue’s case arose from a search conducted under Section 132 in the case of Brij Mohan Gupta, during which various documents, diaries and loose papers were seized. Statements of Brij Mohan Gupta, his son and the group’s accountant were recorded, and it was alleged that the group was engaged in “hundi” business involving undisclosed cash transactions. Based on seized documents and statements, information was forwarded to the jurisdictional Assessing Officer, who initiated reassessment proceedings under Section 148. The Assessing Officer ultimately completed the assessment under Sections 147/143(3)/69A by making an addition of ₹3.70 crore as unexplained income, holding that the respondent had not disclosed alleged cash transactions with the Brij Mohan Gupta group. The Commissioner (Appeals) deleted the addition, and the ITAT upheld that order by relying on its earlier decisions in DCIT v. Mahabir Prasad Gupta and Ashok Prasad Gupta v. Commissioner of Income Tax.
