DCIT (BPU) Vs Anku Nivesh Niryat Pvt. Ltd. & Ors. (Appellate Tribunal Under SAFEMA Delhi)
The DCIT, Kolkata appealed against the Adjudicating Authority’s order dated 27.06.2024 which refused to confirm the Provisional Attachment Order (01.06.2023) & held that the office premises at 5th Floor, 5 Joginder Kaviraj Row, Kolkata was not a Benami property. The Adjudicating Authority relied heavily on the Supreme Court’s earlier judgment in Ganpati Dealcom Pvt. Ltd. (23.08.2022) & excluded 90% of the funding transactions (2013–2016) as being outside the purview of the Benami Amendment Act, which came into force on 01.11.2016.
The Department argued that:
- Anku Nivesh Niryat Pvt. Ltd. (ANNL) was a shell company lacking creditworthiness & used as a benamidar.
- Property was purchased for ₹72,36,000 with funds routed from shell/paper companies, several of which had no PAN, no business activity & acted only as intermediaries.
- The Adjudicating Authority wrongly excluded pre-2016 transactions relying on Ganpati Dealcom, which has now been recalled by the Supreme Court in its review order dated 10.2024.
The Respondent countered that:
- All funds came through proper banking channels & were reflected in audited financials.
- Company regularly filed Income Tax & Companies Act returns.
- No evidence was produced to show that the property was held for the benefit of any “beneficial owner” as defined under PBPTA.
- The allegation of the company being a shell entity was unsubstantiated.
The Tribunal observed that the Adjudicating Authority’s decision was substantially based on the earlier Ganpati Dealcom ruling. Since the Supreme Court has recalled that judgment on 18.10.2024 & restored the civil appeal for fresh hearing, all orders passed relying on the earlier judgment can be reviewed or reconsidered.
Given that the Impugned Order had applied the now-recalled precedent to exclude 90% of the funding & to hold the property as not Benami, the Tribunal held that interference was necessary.
The Appellate Tribunal therefore set aside the Impugned Order & remanded the matter to the Adjudicating Authority for de-novo proceedings, directing that the case be examined afresh on merits without relying on the recalled Ganpati Dealcom judgment.
FULL TEXT OF THE JUDGMENT APPELLATE TRIBUNAL UNDER SAFEMA AT NEW DELHI
