Sanjay Jain Vs PCIT (Central)-3 (ITAT Delhi)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Delhi, considered appeals against revisionary orders passed by the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax (PCIT) under Section 263 for Assessment Years 2013-14 and 2015-16. The dispute arose from assessments framed under Section 153A following a search conducted at the assessee’s residence. The assessee contended that the assessments lacked jurisdiction because the search warrant issued under Section 132 was not in the assessee’s name, but in the names of other persons and an entity. According to the assessee, Section 153A can be invoked only against a person in whose name a valid search warrant has been issued. The assessee further argued that since the assessments under Section 153A were void, the subsequent revision proceedings under Section 263 were also unsustainable. The Revenue argued that the search warrant and panchnama produced before the Tribunal constituted additional evidence and that the matter should be remanded to the PCIT for examination. It was also argued that there could have been another warrant issued in the assessee’s name. However, no such warrant was produced before the Tribunal.
After examining the record, the Tribunal observed that the assessments under Section 153A had been framed pursuant to a search conducted under Warrant No. 7263 dated 06.02.2019, which was issued in the names of other persons and not in the name of the assessee. The Tribunal noted that the Revenue failed to produce any separate warrant authorizing a search against the assessee. Referring to the statutory requirement under Section 153A, the Tribunal held that initiation of a valid search under Section 132 against the concerned person is a prerequisite for invoking assessment proceedings under Section 153A. Since no warrant had been issued in the assessee’s name, the Tribunal held that the assessments framed under Section 153A were non est, invalid, void ab initio, illegal, and unlawful. The Tribunal relied on earlier coordinate bench decisions holding that assessments under Section 153A cannot be sustained where no valid search warrant exists in the name of the assessee. Accordingly, the Tribunal concluded that the Assessing Officer lacked jurisdiction to frame the assessments.
