TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (5) TMI 1322
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....f the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals)-Kurnool, for the above assessment years. Since common issues arise from the above, we have clubbed the appeals together and heard together and are disposed-of by this common order for the sake of convenience. 2. There were search and seizure operations in these cases on 14-07-2004 U/s. 132 of the Act. Thereafter, notices U/s. 153A/153C were issued and assessments were completed U/s. 143(3) r.w.s. 153A/153C of the Act. There were certain additions made in the above cases. Assessees preferred appeals before the Ld.CIT(A), who confirmed the additions made by the AO. Aggrieved by the orders, assessees herein preferred appeals before the ITAT. In the course of proceedings before the ITAT, assessee had ....
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....decom India 120 ITD 48 (Indore). This view appears to be based on the principle that if the language of a statute is plain and clear and there is no ambiguity then the natural and ordinary meaning of the works should be adopted as held by various courts. (Taru Lata Syam V., CIT 108 ITR 345, AIR 2001 SC 1980 in the case of Guru Devdutta VKSS Maryadit Vs. State of Maharastra). The initiation of valid search U/s. 132 or requisition U/s. 132A is the only condition for invoking the provisions of Sec. 153A. The seizure of incriminating material is not the condition for invoking such provisions. Further, unlike provisions of Chapter XIV-B, wherein the assessment was to be made in respect of the undisclosed income on the basis of material found ....
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.... Rajat Tradecom India 20 ITD 48 (Ind) has also held that once search is made, assessments get reopened for six years even if no incriminating material is found". AO repeated the total income as assessed vide earlier orders dt. 29-12-2006. 4. Aggrieved by the above orders, assessees preferred appeals and relied on the judgment of Hon'ble High Court in the case of CIT Vs. Kabul Chawla [380 ITR 573] (Delhi) and Pr.CIT Vs. Lata Jain [81 taxmann.com 83] and other Co-ordinate Bench decisions [as extracted by the Ld.CIT(A) in para 5 of the order]. However, Ld.CIT(A) dismissed the contentions stating as under: "6.3. In this context, the Assessing Officer stated that "In view of the above discussion, the new legal ground raised before the T....
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....hough Section 153A does not say that additions should be directly made on the basis of evidence found in the course of search or other post search material or information available with the AO which can be related to the evidence found, it does not mean that the assessment can be arbitrarily made without any relevance or nexus with the seized material. (iii) In the absence of any incriminating material, the completed assessment can be reiterated and the abated assessment or re-assessment can be made. The word 'assess' in Section 153A is relatable to abated proceedings [i.e., those pending on the date of search] and the word 're-assess' to completed the proceedings. (iv) Insofar as the pending assessments are concerned, the jurisdiction ....
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....8] (Visakhapatnam -Trib.) and DCIT, Central Circle-3 Vs. Lingam Tulsi Prasad [82 taxmann.com 335] (Hyderabad - Trib) have followed the above principles and held that assessments U/s. 153A could not be made on the basis of income returned by assessee or on the basis of books of account of assessee where no incriminating material had been found from possession of assessee. 6. Ld.CIT(A) inspite of written submissions made before him and contentions raised, did not consider the above principles laid down by the judicial authorities. Instead the issue discussed by the AO whether the proceedings U/s. 153A are mandatory or not have been upheld, when there is no dispute with reference to initiation of proceedings. The dispute is only with referenc....