2021 (7) TMI 1004 - AT - Income Tax

Tribunal rules for assessee, rejects Revenue appeal on unexplained cash credits in block assessments

Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Circle-1, HYDERABAD Versus Sri Harmahender Singh Bagga, HYDERABAD And Inderjeet Kaur Bagga, L/R. of Late Harmahender Singh Bagga HYDERABAD Versus Deputy Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Circle-1, HYDERABAD

The Tribunal ruled in favor of the assessee, dismissing the Revenue's appeal to revive additions of unexplained cash credits in block assessments. The ... Initiation of Section 158BC proceedings - entries made in assessee’s regular books of account could be made - HELD THAT:- We notice in this factual backdrop that the foregoing issue is no more resjudicata. It is not in dispute that the impugned search had also covered the case of assessee’s family/member Shri Kuldip Singh Bagga. This tribunal’s coordinate bench’s earlier order dt.14-10-2011 for the very block period and search had held that the credits in issue cannot be gone into in block assessment proceedings as the same would only form subject matter of regular assessment proceedings. Unexplained cash credit - HELD THAT:- Since the Assessing Officer’s remand report dt.02-05-2018 itself verified that assessee’s credits which are recorded in already maintained books of account which could form subject matter of regular and not block assessments as per hon'ble jurisdictional high court’s decision in the very group of cases - Revenue cannot be treated as an aggrieved party when the Assessing Officer’s remand report agrees with an assessee’s contentions. Issues Involved:1. Addition of amounts reflected in regular books of account in block period assessments.2. Unexplained cash credits and their treatment in block assessments.3. Remand report verification and its implications on the additions.4. Application of jurisdictional high court’s decision in similar cases.Detailed Analysis:1. Addition of Amounts Reflected in Regular Books of Account in Block Period Assessments:The core issue revolves around whether transactions recorded in the regular books of account can be added in block period assessments. The assessee argued that such transactions should only be examined in regular assessments unless there is incriminating material found during the search. The ITAT, in its earlier order, had not considered this argument, leading to the filing of Miscellaneous Applications by the assessee. The Tribunal, in its current order, acknowledged that once entries are reflected in the books of account, they cannot be added under the block period and should be deleted.2. Unexplained Cash Credits and Their Treatment in Block Assessments:The Revenue sought to revive the Assessing Officer’s action of adding various unexplained cash credits for different assessment years. The assessee contended that these credits were already recorded in the regular books of account and thus should not be part of the block assessment. The Tribunal noted that similar issues in related cases had been adjudicated, where it was held that such credits should only be examined in regular assessments. Consequently, the Tribunal decided in favor of the assessee for most of the additions, except for a specific amount involving Syndicate Bank-624.3. Remand Report Verification and Its Implications on the Additions:A remand report submitted by the Assessing Officer indicated that most of the credits were recorded in the regular books of account, except for a minor amount. This verification supported the assessee’s argument that these credits should not be part of the block assessment. The Tribunal cited case law, including B.Jayalakshmi Vs. ACIT and CIT Vs. DM Purnesh, to emphasize that the Revenue cannot be treated as an aggrieved party when the Assessing Officer’s remand report agrees with the assessee’s contentions.4. Application of Jurisdictional High Court’s Decision in Similar Cases:The Tribunal referenced a previous order concerning the assessee’s family member, where the jurisdictional high court had affirmed that credits recorded in regular books of account should not be examined in block assessments. This precedent was applied to the current case, leading to a similar conclusion that the impugned additions should be part of regular assessments, not block assessments.Conclusion:The Tribunal ruled that the Revenue’s appeal to revive the additions of unexplained cash credits is dismissed, and the assessee’s appeal is partly allowed. The additions based on entries in the regular books of account are to be deleted from the block period assessments, except for a minor amount involving Syndicate Bank-624. The Tribunal’s decision aligns with the jurisdictional high court’s precedent and the remand report’s findings.