Assessments which do not abate and assessment & addition u/s 153A without reference to incriminating seized material is not sustainable.

This ruling clarifies that income tax assessments and additions made under section 153A are invalid if they are not supported by incriminating material found during a search. The tribunal emphasised that such additions, particularly those concerning items already reflected in the assessee's balance sheet, cannot be sustained if no evidence directly linking them to undisclosed income or assets is discovered. This decision reinforces the principle that assessments must be based on concrete findings from searches.

IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL
“J” BENCH, MUMBAI

BEFORE SHRI SHAMIM YAHYA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER AND
SHRI RAM LAL NEGI, JUDICIAL MEMBER

ITA no.5165/Mum./2018
(Assessment Year : 2008–09)

ITA no.5166/Mum./2018
(Assessment Year : 2009–10)

ITA no.5167/Mum./2018
(Assessment Year : 2011–12)

Shri Dinesh Salecha
4th Floor, 4–D, Vijay Chambers
Opp. Dreamland Cinema
Tribhuvan Road, Mumbai 400 004
PAN – AAOPS2280C
……………. Appellant

v/s

Dy. Commissioner of Income Tax
Central Circle–8(3), Mumbai
……………. Respondent

Assessee by : Shri Shashi Tulsiyan
Revenue by : Dr. Deepkant Prasad

Date of Hearing – 29.10.2020 
Date of Order – 01.01.2021

O R D E R

PER SHAMIM YAHYA, A.M.

These are appeals by the assessee, against the common orderdated 31st July 2018, passed by the learned CIT(A) for the concerned assessment years as above.

2. The grounds of appeal are common except for the amounts. Forthe sake of reference we are referring to grounds of appeal for assessment year 2008–09 which reads as under:–

“1. The learned Assessing officer and CIT (A) 50 erred in makingaddition under section 68 of Rs 25,00,000/- being loan fromSimran Gems without appreciating the fact that the said loan wasshown in the balance sheet of the assessee and that there was no incriminating material found in the course of search and therefore as per the principal laid down by Honourable Bombay High courtin the case of Continental Warehousing Corporation (Nahava Seva)LTD. And All Cargo Global Logestic LTD. (2015) 374 ITR645 and reaffirmed in the recent judgment CIT-20 vs DeepakKumar Agarwal ITA NO, 1709 of 2014 dated 11th September 2017no addition could be made for items for which there is not incriminating material.

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