Reassessment for non-disclosure fails when the Department already knew the primary facts and no further disclosure was required.

Reassessment under section 147(a) of the Income-tax Act was held unsustainable where the Department already possessed the material showing house remodelling expenditure before the original assessment was completed. The assessee was not required to make a separate disclosure of such investment particulars when the return form did not call for them, and there was no failure to disclose primary facts truly and fully. On that basis, reopening for alleged non-disclosure of house remodelling expenditure was invalid.

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Issues: Whether reassessment under section 147(a) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 could be sustained on the ground that the assessee had failed to disclose house remodelling expenditure in the original return.

Analysis: The material available to the Department already showed the remodelling work and the expenditure incurred, and the original assessment had been completed after the Department came into possession of those facts. The assessee was held under no obligation to make a separate disclosure of investments made, and the return form did not require such particulars. On these facts, the case for reopening on the basis of alleged non-disclosure of primary facts was not made out.

Conclusion: Reassessment under section 147(a) was invalid, and the assessee succeeded.

Ratio Decidendi: Reassessment cannot be initiated under section 147(a) when the material facts relied upon were already within the Department's knowledge and there was no failure by the assessee to disclose primary facts truly and fully.

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