Fresh appellate claims for short-term capital gains cannot be raised when omitted from return and assessment record.

An appellate authority cannot entertain fresh claims for treating income as short-term capital gains and seeking consequential set-off or recomputation when those claims were not made in the return, during assessment, or by revised return. The principle allowing an additional ground in appeal does not extend to a debatable claim requiring factual investigation, especially where it was not part of the assessment record and no change in law or circumstances is shown. On these facts, the appellate authority exceeded its jurisdiction by admitting the new claims, and the Revenue succeeded on the issue.

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Issues: Whether the appellate authority could entertain new claims for treating income as short-term capital gains and for consequential set-off or recomputation when those claims were not made in the return, during assessment, or by revised return.

Analysis: The return was filed and assessed on the basis adopted by the assessee, and the disputed characterization of income required investigation of facts. The claims raised before the appellate authority were not shown to have been advanced before the Assessing Officer, nor was there a demonstrated change of circumstances or law. The principle permitting an additional ground in appeal does not extend to a debatable claim that was not part of the assessment record and was not otherwise shown to be bona fide or incapable of earlier assertion on the facts disclosed. The appellate authority therefore exceeded its jurisdiction in entertaining those fresh claims.

Conclusion: The additional claims were not maintainable before the appellate authority and the Revenue succeeded on the issue.

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