Unexplained investment in property upheld under section 69 when sale deed recitals and cheque dates did not match.

Unexplained investment in immovable property was treated as assessable under section 69 where the registered sale deed recited payment by cheques and cash, but the assessee claimed the cheques were never issued to the vendor and remained with him because the property was under dispute. The recitals in the deed and the cheque dates produced before the ITAT were found inconsistent, and the explanation that the sale was registered without any payment of consideration was not accepted. As no material displaced the revenue authorities' finding that the investment came from unexplained sources, the addition under section 69 was upheld against the assessee.

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Issues: (i) Whether the addition made under section 69 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 towards unexplained investment in purchase of immovable property was justified.

Analysis: The sale deed recorded payment of consideration through cheques and cash, while the assessee contended that the cheques were not actually issued to the vendor and remained with him because the property was under dispute. The recitals in the registered deed and the cheque dates produced before the Bench were inconsistent. The explanation that the sale was registered without payment of consideration was not accepted, and no material was found to displace the revenue authorities' finding that the assessee had invested in the property from unexplained sources.

Conclusion: The addition under section 69 was upheld and is against the assessee.

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