Non-consideration of material documents justified remand of the assessment, with conditional relief tied to tax payment on admitted income.

An assessment order that fails to consider material documents produced by the assessee can be interfered with and remitted for fresh assessment. The Madras HC noted that the order did not address evidence supporting the assessee's claim of acting only as a middleman in auction transactions, so the assessment could not stand on that record. Relief was nevertheless made conditional to protect revenue interests: the assessee was required to pay tax on the admitted income under the presumptive scheme within the stipulated time. The matter was therefore sent back for reconsideration on merits after compliance with the tax payment condition.

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Issues: Whether the assessment order was liable to be set aside for non-consideration of the documents produced by the assessee and the matter remitted for fresh assessment, subject to payment of tax on the admitted income under the presumptive scheme.

Analysis: The assessment order did not deal with the materials produced to show that the assessee acted only as a middleman in the auction transactions. That omission warranted interference, since the assessment could not stand without consideration of the relevant records. At the same time, the assessee had indicated liability on the undisputed income and had offered to pay tax under the presumptive provisions, which justified protecting the revenue by imposing a condition while granting relief.

Conclusion: The assessment order was set aside and the matter was remitted for fresh assessment on merits, with the assessee required to pay tax on the admitted income under the presumptive provision within the stipulated time.

Final Conclusion: The assessee obtained conditional relief by way of remand, while the assessing authority was directed to pass a fresh order after due consideration of the materials and compliance with the tax payment condition.

Ratio Decidendi: An assessment order that ignores relevant documents bearing on the assessee's liability can be interfered with and remitted for fresh decision, while appropriate conditions may be imposed to safeguard the revenue.

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