No Section 269SS Penalty Without Proof of Actual Cash, MOU Alone Insufficient – Rs. 25 Cr Penalty Quashed

ACIT Vs Sanjeev J. Aeren (ITAT Delhi) ITAT Delhi quashed a Rs.25 crore penalty imposed under Section 271D, ruling that mere seizure of an MOU without evidence of actual cash loan cannot establish violation of Section 269SS. The tribunal emphasized that assumptions without independent proof are insufficient for penalty. Revenue appealed against order of CIT(A) deleting penalty of Rs.25 crores imposed u/s 271D on the ground that the Assessee had accepted cash loan in violation of s.269SS. A search u/s 132 was conducted on 17.08.2011 in the Aeren group. During search, a photocopy of MOU dated 10....