Protective addition for alleged on-money payment fails without direct evidence linking the buyer to undisclosed consideration.

Protective addition under section 69A for alleged on-money payment on property purchase was found unsustainable because the record lacked direct, corroborative evidence linking the assessee to any undisclosed payment. The Tribunal treated the addition as based on presumption rather than proof and applied the principle that a protective addition cannot survive without reliable material showing the assessee's actual involvement in the alleged transaction. The addition was deleted and the issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether the protective addition made under section 69A on account of alleged on-money payment for purchase of property could be sustained.

Analysis: The addition was founded on material relating to alleged on-money payment to the developer, but the record did not show any direct evidence linking the assessee to the alleged undisclosed payment. The Tribunal noted that the case rested on presumption rather than concrete proof and that the absence of specific, corroborative material made the addition unsustainable. Following the legal position applied in the cited co-owner and jurisdictional precedents, the Tribunal held that a protective addition cannot stand without reliable evidence establishing the assessee's actual involvement in the alleged transaction.

Conclusion: The protective addition was deleted and the issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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