Mechanical section 153D approval in search assessments was invalid, rendering the section 153A orders void ab initio.

Section 153D approval in search assessments must reflect objective, conscious application of mind to the seized material and draft orders; a routine or formal endorsement is insufficient. The Tribunal noted that draft assessment orders in multiple search cases were approved within a day, making meaningful scrutiny improbable, and found no record of real examination by the approving authority. The approval was therefore treated as mechanical and invalid, and the assessments framed under section 153A were held illegal and void ab initio in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether the assessments framed under section 153A were invalid for want of proper approval under section 153D, the approval having been granted mechanically without application of mind.

Analysis: The Tribunal found that the draft assessment orders in multiple search cases were approved within a day, making it improbable that the approving authority could have meaningfully examined the seized material and the draft orders. It relied on the settled principle that approval under section 153D is a statutory safeguard in search assessments and must reflect an objective and conscious application of mind, not a routine or formal endorsement. Since the record did not show any real scrutiny by the approving authority, the approval was treated as mechanical.

Conclusion: The approval under section 153D was held to be mechanically granted and invalid, rendering the assessment orders illegal and void ab initio. The issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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