Incriminating material is required to disturb a completed assessment under section 153A; suspicion over a gift addition was insufficient.

In section 153A proceedings, a completed assessment can be disturbed only on the basis of incriminating material found during search. Here, the earlier section 143(3) assessment had already examined the donor's identity, creditworthiness and the genuineness of the gift, and the search yielded no tangible material showing the gift was bogus. Additions founded merely on inference, partial statements and suspicion about the absence of a close family relationship were held insufficient, and the gift addition was deleted.

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Issues: Whether additions made in proceedings under section 153A could sustain in respect of a completed assessment in the absence of any incriminating material found during search, and whether the impugned gift addition was otherwise justified on merits.

Analysis: The assessment for the relevant year had already been completed under section 143(3) after the donor's identity, creditworthiness and the genuineness of the gift transaction had been examined. In the subsequent search, no tangible incriminating material was found to show that the gift was bogus. The additions were based only on inferences drawn from parts of a statement and on suspicion regarding the absence of close family relationship, but such material was held insufficient to justify disturbance of a concluded assessment under section 153A. The reasoning also noted that, on the facts and the law then applicable, there was no prohibition against receiving a gift from a friend, and the evidences supporting the gift were already on record.

Conclusion: The additions made in the section 153A proceedings were unsustainable and were deleted; the appeals were allowed.

Final Conclusion: A concluded assessment can be interfered with under section 153A only on the basis of incriminating material found during search, and mere suspicion or surmise about a gift transaction does not justify the addition.

Ratio Decidendi: Completed assessments under section 153A may be reopened or altered only on the basis of incriminating material discovered during search, not on conjecture or suspicion.

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