2022 (7) TMI 1157 - AT - Income Tax

Tribunal upholds Income Tax Act reopening, rejects inflated expenses, and dismisses commission income claim.

M/s Sparsh Impex Versus Income Tax Officer, Ward- 2 (3) (8), Surat And (Vice-Versa)

The Tribunal upheld the validity of the reopening under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act based on credible third-party information. It also confirmed the ... Estimation of income - bogus purchases - HELD THAT:- We note that issue under consideration is squarely covered by the decision of the Co-ordinate Bench of this Tribunal in case of Pankaj K. Choudhary & others [2021 (10) TMI 653 - ITAT SURAT]. This Tribunal has taken a constant view and made disallowance @ 6% of bogus purchases. As the issue is squarely covered by the decision of the Coordinate Bench, in the case of Pankaj Choudhary(supra), and there is no change in facts and law and the ld DR for the Revenue is unable to produce any material to controvert the aforesaid findings of the Coordinate Bench(supra), hence respectfully following the binding precedent, we allow Revenue`s appeal partly. Issues Involved:1. Validity of reopening under Section 148 of the Income Tax Act.2. Rejection of books of account under Section 145(3) of the Income Tax Act.3. Disallowance of bogus purchases and the percentage of disallowance.4. Assessment of commission income on sales in relation to bogus purchases.Issue-wise Detailed Analysis:1. Validity of Reopening under Section 148:The assessee challenged the reopening of the assessment under Section 148, arguing that it was based on third-party information without preliminary investigation. The Tribunal upheld the reopening, citing that the Assessing Officer (AO) received credible information from the Investigation Wing about accommodation entries provided by the Rajendra Jain Group. The Tribunal referred to the Gujarat High Court's decisions in Peass Industrial Engineers (P) Ltd Vs DCIT and Pushpak Bullion (P) Ltd Vs DCIT, which justified reopening based on such information.2. Rejection of Books of Account under Section 145(3):The AO rejected the assessee's books of account under Section 145(3), concluding that the purchases from certain parties were bogus. The Tribunal noted that the AO neither examined nor found defects in the documents provided by the assessee. However, the Tribunal upheld the rejection of the books based on the evidence and modus operandi adopted by the assessee to reduce its true profits by inflating expenses with bogus purchases.3. Disallowance of Bogus Purchases:The AO initially made a 100% disallowance of the bogus purchases amounting to Rs. 27,93,74,602/-. The CIT(A) restricted this disallowance to 5%, amounting to Rs. 1,14,93,256/-. The Tribunal, referring to the decision in Pankaj K. Choudhary & others, adjusted the disallowance to 6% of the bogus purchases, concluding that this percentage would suffice to cover the profit element embedded in the transactions. The Tribunal directed the AO to correct the disallowance to 6% of Rs. 27,93,74,602/-, amounting to Rs. 1,67,62,476/-.4. Assessment of Commission Income on Sales:The assessee argued that the partners were part of the Rajendra Jain Group, and hence, commission income on sales should be assessed. The Tribunal dismissed this argument, reiterating that the case involved bogus purchases. The Tribunal followed the consistent stand taken in similar cases involving the Rajendra Jain Group, affirming the addition at 6% of the bogus purchases.Conclusion:The Tribunal partly allowed the Revenue's appeal by adjusting the disallowance to 6% of the bogus purchases and dismissed the assessee's appeal on all grounds. The final order directed the AO to correct the disallowance figure and confirmed the validity of the reopening and rejection of the books of account.