Jasmine Shah Srivastava Vs ACIT (ITAT Bangalore)
Search Material Cannot Trigger 147 – Wrong Section Invoked – Tribunal Says 153C, Not 147, Applies- ITAT Bangalore Cancels Reassessment Based on Search Seizure15
Reassessment on Search Material? ITAT Bangalore Quashes ₹50 Lakh Addition – Proper Course was u/s 153C, Not 147
Bangalore Tribunal has quashed a reassessment order holding that once the addition is entirely based on documents seized during a search, AO cannot invoke section 147/148. The correct course is to proceed u/s 153C.
Assessee, a non-resident, did not file return for A.Y. 2011-12 though she had taxable income & investments. A search u/s 132 was conducted on 21.09.2017 at the residence of assessee’s sister Smt. Mamta Ajila. A diary seized during search recorded that assessee had advanced a cash loan of ₹50 lakhs to Shri V.G. Siddhartha during F.Y. 2010-11. Based on this, AO reopened assessment u/s 148 (31.03.2018), completed reassessment u/s 143(3) r.w.s. 147 & made addition of ₹50 lakhs as unexplained investment. Income was determined at ₹54,06,170.
Assessee contended that the entire basis of reopening was search material seized u/s 132. Proper jurisdiction lay u/s 153C, not u/s 147. Reliance was placed on SC in Vikram Sujitkumar Bhatia (453 ITR 417), Karnataka HC in Dinakar Suvarna (ITA No.16/2015, 08.07.2022), Karnataka HC in VSL Mining Company Pvt. Ltd. (20.09.2024),
