Meenaz Anjum Dayatar Vs ITO (ITAT Ahmedabad)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Ahmedabad Bench, has allowed the appeal filed by the assessee, Meenaz Anjum Dayatar, a homemaker, and restored the case to the file of the Assessing Officer (AO) for fresh adjudication. The Tribunal’s decision was primarily based on the finding that the assessee was deprived of a fair and reasonable opportunity to present her case, thus violating the principles of natural justice.
The Core of the Dispute
The case relates to the Assessment Year (AY) 2018-19, where the assessee had not filed a return of income. The AO, based on information from the Insight Portal, noted two major transactions: a cash deposit of Rs. 8,89,500/- in a bank account and the sale of an immovable property for Rs. 1,15,00,000/-.
Since the assessee failed to respond to repeated notices under Section 142(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, the AO proceeded to frame an ex-parte assessment under Section 147 read with Section 144. The AO treated the entire sum of Rs. 1,23,89,500/- (cash deposit plus gross sale value) as unexplained income and made the full addition to the assessee’s total income, incorrectly treating the gross sale proceeds of the property as unexplained credit under Section 68 of the Act.
