Circumstantial evidence can sustain murder, conspiracy and destruction-of-evidence convictions only when the proved circumstances form a complete chain excluding every reasonable hypothesis of innocence. Electronic communications may be authenticated through certificates and responsible service-provider testimony despite non-prescribed certificate formats or authorised data transfers. Discovery pursuant to disclosure statements, deleted communications, unexplained contact patterns, conduct and false alibis may complete that chain. Article 161 clemency remains a distinct constitutional power, wider than statutory remission, permitting individual pardon, reprieve, remission or commutation on ministerial advice and unaffected by statutory remission mechanisms.

Unexplained expenditure - cash purchases in regular business -cash purchases of fruits - Documentary proof of business transaction Addition for unexplained expenditure in respect of cash purchases of fruits, despite documentary evidence establishing them as declared business transactions - HELD THAT: - The ledger accounts, sale invoices and bank-account extracts showed that the transactions with the fruit supplier were business transactions duly declared by the assessee. The documentary evide... ... ...

Cash deposits received as consultancy fees - Unexplained cash deposits - Addition for cash deposits treated as unexplained despite their receipt as IELTS consultancy fees and inclusion in gross receipts HELD THAT: - The assertion that the deposits represented consultancy fees collected from clients, duly included in the returned gross receipts and supported by cash vouchers recording client particulars and fees, remained unrebutted. There was therefore no justification for sustaining the addi... ... ...

Penalty for under-reporting of income u/s 270A - invalid initiation under section 271(1)(c) Validity of penalty for under-reporting of income where the assessment order recorded satisfaction for initiation of penalty proceedings u/s 271(1)(c) - HELD THAT: - AO recorded satisfaction for initiating penalty proceedings for furnishing inaccurate particulars under section 271(1)(c), though that provision did not apply to assessment years commencing on or after 01/04/2017. The initiation was theref... ... ...

Failure to consider documentary evidence in appellate proceedings Sustainability of the addition towards alleged undisclosed business income where the first appellate authority recorded non-production of evidence despite reproducing the assessee's submission that bank statements and ledger accounts had been enclosed - HELD THAT: - The appellate order itself reproduced the assessee's assertion that bank-account statements and ledger-account copies had been furnished, while also stating... ... ...

Fresh opportunity of hearing - Best judgment assessment - Remand of the assessment concerning cash deposits during demonetisation, estimated business income and disallowed salary-related claims for fresh adjudication after a further opportunity to the assessee HELD THAT: - Noting the assessee's non-assistance during both assessment and first appellate proceedings, Tribunal, in the interest of justice, considered it appropriate to permit the assessee one further opportunity to support the ... ... ...

Concessional corporate tax rate based on turnover threshold Tax rate for company with turnover below prescribed threshold - Applicability of the 25% corporate tax rate for AY 2018-19 to a company whose total turnover for the previous year 2015-16 was below the prescribed threshold - HELD THAT: - The applicable rate under the Finance Act, 2018 depended upon the company's total turnover for the previous year 2015-16. Since the total revenue, comprising revenue from operations and other inco... ... ...

Revisionary jurisdiction for alleged lack of inquiry into legal and professional expenses Validity of revision of the assessment on the allegation that the Assessing Officer had not examined the claim for legal and professional expenses - HELD THAT: - The Assessing Officer had obtained complete details of the legal and professional charges and the purpose of payments during assessment. The revisional authority neither found any defect in those details nor demonstrated how the assessment order... ... ...

Revision under section 263 - interest on enhanced land-acquisition compensation - Interest under section 28 of the Land Acquisition Act as part of enhanced compensation Validity of revision under section 263 of an assessment accepting exemption of interest received under section 28 of the Land Acquisition Act as part of enhanced compensation for compulsory acquisition of agricultural land - HELD THAT: - The Tribunal adopted its earlier detailed reasoning that an assessment cannot be treated a... ... ...

Limitation for assessment of non-searched person under section 153C HELD THAT: - The Revenue did not dispute the material facts or the applicability of the decision governing the period available for action under section 153C in the case of a non-searched person. The Tribunal therefore upheld the finding that, on reckoning the permissible six assessment years from the relevant handover or satisfaction point, AY 2015-16 lay outside that period. See OJJUS MEDICARE PVT. LTD. AND OTHERS [2024 (4)... ... ...

Section 153A assessment of unabated assessments - Incriminating material for section 68 share-sale capital gains addition Sustainability of the section 68 addition for long-term capital gains from sale of shares in an unabated assessment under section 153A, absent incriminating material found in the search - HELD THAT: - The assessment was concluded on the date of search, as the time for issuing notice under section 143(2) had expired; non-filing of the return within the due date did not rend... ... ...

Cash sales in specified bank notes - unexplained cash credit - Customer advances for two-wheeler purchases-unexplained cash credit - Admission of additional evidence Cash deposits received by an authorised dealer of a private oil marketing company from petrol and diesel sales during demonetisation, treated as unexplained cash credit solely because specified bank notes were accepted - HELD THAT: - The books of account were neither found unreliable nor rejected, and the availability of stock an... ... ...

Presumption as to seized documents - Limitation for reassessment notice - Document Identification Number requirement Presumption as to seized documents - Addition based on a document seized from the assessee's custody-application of the statutory presumption as to ownership and truth of contents - HELD THAT: - The seized document attracted the presumption that it belonged to the assessee and that its contents were true. The assessee failed to rebut that presumption through confirmation, d... ... ...

Rejection of the books of account u/s 145(3) and the consequential net-profit addition confirmed. The impugned order of the Ld. CIT(A) does not warrant any interference, having regard to the specific facts and circumstances of the present case and applicable law.... ... ...

Tax deduction at source on interest and contractual payments-tax-audit threshold - Interest on borrowed capital-business utilisation and availability of own funds Tax deduction at source on interest and contractual payments - Presumptive income from goods carriages - Disallowance of interest, earthwork and transport expenditure for non-deduction of tax at source where the assessee's preceding-year income from trucks was computed presumptively - HELD THAT: - The assessee had declared incom... ... ...

Unexplained cash credit - share-sale proceeds Addition as unexplained cash credit in respect of consideration received on sale of shares - HELD THAT: - The share acquisition was supported by payment through banking channels, and the sale transaction was substantiated by documentary evidence. The purchaser, in response to notice, confirmed the transaction and furnished an affidavit. The receipt thus had an identified and explained source, and could not be treated as unexplained merely because ... ... ...

Third-party search material - exclusive assessment under section 153C - Overriding effect of search assessment provisions Validity of assessment u/s 143(3) founded on incriminating material seized during the search of a third party, instead of proceeding under section 153C - HELD THAT: - The incriminating material seized in the search of the third party was undisputedly the basis for initiation of proceedings. Section 153C was held to be the exclusive procedure for assessment where material r... ... ...

Reconciliation of cash deposits with audited books - Unexplained cash credit-reconciliation of capital account - Taxation of net commission income - Double addition of income Reconciliation of cash deposits with audited books - Addition for allegedly unexplained cash deposits based on AIR and CIB information relating to the assessee's bank account - HELD THAT: - The cash transactions represented sales of petrol, diesel and other goods recorded in the audited books, and the bank deposits w... ... ...

Eligibility of undertaking providing electronic data interchange services - Electronic data interchange and internet services Eligible undertaking for electronic data interchange services - Functional independence of undertaking - Eligibility of the undertaking providing EDI/internet services for deduction under section 80IA despite use of existing telecommunications infrastructure - HELD THAT: - Section 80IA(4C) required the undertaking to commence the specified telecommunication services wi... ... ...

Exemption u/s 11 - valid registration under section 12A/12AB - Taxability of net income of an unregistered charitable trust Entitlement of a charitable trust to exemption u/s 11 for AY 2023-24 in the absence of valid registration u/s 12A/12AB - HELD THAT: - It was admitted that the assessee did not hold valid registration under section 12A/12AB for the relevant assessment year. The statutory condition for exemption under section 11 was consequently not satisfied. [Paras 5, 10] The denial o... ... ...