Uncorroborated search disclosure cannot sustain an income addition when the seized document is not produced and independent evidence is absent.

An addition for undisclosed income based on a post-search disclosure and the alleged contents of seized document BSA/1 could not be sustained where the document was not produced before the Tribunal, the assessee denied its ownership, and no corroborative material such as cash, assets, or other independent evidence was found in the search. A disclosure or admission made during search is evidentiary but not conclusive, and a retracted admission cannot support an addition without supporting material. On those facts, the statutory presumption regarding seized documents was treated as inapplicable, and the addition was deleted in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether the addition of Rs. 89,02,110 as undisclosed income could be sustained on the basis of the search document and the post-search disclosure, in the absence of corroborative material and where the document was not produced before the Tribunal.

Analysis: The addition rested on a disclosure made after the search and on the alleged contents of seized document BSA/1. The assessee denied that the document belonged to him and the Revenue could not produce it before the Tribunal despite a specific direction. The search had not yielded any cash, assets, or other independent material supporting the alleged commission income. A disclosure or admission made during search is evidentiary but not conclusive, and a retracted admission cannot safely sustain an addition without corroboration. In these circumstances, the statutory presumption regarding seized documents was held inapplicable on the facts, and the addition could not be upheld merely on the basis of the uncorroborated disclosure.

Conclusion: The addition of Rs. 89,02,110 was deleted and the issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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