The tribunal held that cash deposits during demonetisation cannot be treated as unexplained income when supported by audited books and stock records. Mere suspicion or surrounding circumstances cannot override accepted accounts.
ITAT Delhi held that satisfaction note recorded before initiation of the proceedings u/s 153C of the Income Tax Act is not a valid satisfaction. Accordingly, proceedings u/s. 153C of the Income Tax Act is quashed since based on invalid satisfaction.
A single approval was granted for multiple years without examining seized material or draft orders. The Tribunal ruled that such omnibus approval vitiates proceedings under Sections 153A/143(3).
The tribunal held that merely declaring a low net profit rate cannot justify reopening under Section 147. A valid reassessment requires tangible material and a live nexus with income escapement.
The tribunal held that recomputation of deductions under Sections 36(1)(viia)(c) and 36(1)(viii) involves a debatable legal issue. Such matters cannot be corrected through Section 154 rectification proceedings.
The Tribunal held that reopening AY 2012–13 after a post-2021 search was barred by limitation. Applying Supreme Court guidance, it ruled that older limitation periods protect concluded assessments from retrospective reopening.
The Tribunal upheld deletion of disallowance where the tax authority failed to produce direct evidence linking the taxpayer to any refund of alleged bogus political donations.
Since the mandatory notice was issued by an officer lacking jurisdiction, the assessment was quashed as void ab initio. A valid notice by the correct officer within limitation is indispensable.
Since the reassessment notice was barred by limitation, the tribunal did not examine capital gains issues on merits. The ruling confirms that jurisdictional defects override substantive tax disputes.
Additions under Sections 68 and 69C were set aside after the Tribunal found the mandatory approval to be a mere formality. The ruling reinforces that Section 153D approval is not a procedural ritual.
