Gavireddygari Aparna Kalyani Vs ACIT (ITAT Hyderabad)
The Hyderabad Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal examined the evidentiary value of electronic records and the applicability of Sections 65A and 65B of the Indian Evidence Act in proceedings initiated under Section 153C of the Income Tax Act. The dispute related to alleged cash payments made by villa purchasers to a developer company based on electronic data retrieved from the mobile phone of a director of the developer company.
The Assessing Officer relied on a printout of a picture extracted from the mobile phone of the director of the developer company, which allegedly contained details of cheque payments and cash payments received from villa buyers. According to the Revenue, the document was supported by a certificate issued under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act by a Digital Forensic Examiner. The Revenue also relied on the Supreme Court decision in Ravinder Singh @ Kaku v. State of Punjab to argue that electronic evidence accompanied by a certificate under Section 65B had evidentiary value.
During the hearing, the Tribunal specifically asked whether the certificate under Section 65B had been supplied to the assessees and whether they had been given an opportunity to respond or cross-examine the material relied upon by the Revenue. The assessees contended that no such certificate had been provided during assessment or appellate proceedings. They also argued that electronic records retrieved from a third party’s mobile phone could not automatically bind unrelated assessees.
