TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2023 (4) TMI 487
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....on was not possible. 2. That the Ld. CIT (A) has erred on facts and in law in deleting the addition of Rs.5,40,25,000/- overlooking the facts that in the just preceding years the assessee was not showing any substantial cash sales and to cover up the cash seized by the ED, he made a story that the said cash was out of cash sales of just 3 days." 3. The assessee has taken the following grounds in the cross objections :- "1. That in the given facts assessment order passed u/s 153A/143(3) dated 31.12.2019, being passed without authority of law and is patently ultra vires to the provisions of the Act, and ergo impugned order of ld. CIT-A dated 25.06.2021 in not accepting the appellants jurisdictional plea(s) to quash the said assessment is also not valid on the pleaded jurisdictional counts. 2. That since there is no valid and requisite mandatory statutory approval u/s 153D in extant ca e as pleaded before ld.cit-a which jurisdictional plea has been overruled on extraneous and irrelevant grounds, so orders of Ld AO and Ld CITA are void ab initio and jurisdictionally flawed and deserves to be quashed 3. That since assessment order passed u/s 153A/1....
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..... 9. Referring to the approval given by the Addl. CIT, he submitted that the same has been granted on the very same day and the assessment records were never sent to the Addl. CIT, which is discernable from the said letter. The ld. counsel for the Assessee referring to the errors in the assessment order regarding the returned income, total assessed income and nature of addition submitted that the Addl. CIT in the instant case has given his approval in a mechanical manner and without verification of the assessment records. He submitted that when the approval of the case was given on the same day and within a few hours of receipt and when there is very little time left with the AO to complete the assessment and the mistakes are glaring, it clearly shows that there is complete non-application of mind by the AO as well as the Addl. CIT. The Ld. Counsel for the Assessee submitted that if the Addl. CIT would have gone through the records, he would have noticed the blunders committed by the AO. He submitted that since, the assessment records were never sent to the Addl. CIT, therefore it was not possible on the part of the Addl. CIT to take a decision as to whether the order was ....
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...., it emerges that the function to be performed by the Addl. CIT or CIT in granting previous approval u/s 153-D of the Act, requires to adopt judicial approach and to apply his mind independently and to conduct the enquiry himself on the entire facts, material, evidence and proposal put up to him for approval in the light of the material placed and relied upon by the Assessing Officer because where any act or function requires application of mind and judicial discretion or approach by any authority it partakes and assumes the character and status of judicial or at least quasi-judicial act, particularly because their Act or function is likely to affect the rights of affected persons. As the question of validity of the approval goes to the root of the case and can vitiate the assessment proceedings itself and therefore the said power vested in the Commissioner to grant or not to grant approval is coupled with a duty and cannot be exercised casually and in a routine manner. 17.1 However, in the present case, we have no hesitation in stating that there is complete non-application of mind by the Ld. Addl. CIT before granting the approval. Had there been application of mind, he w....
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.....03.2013 from ACIT which was granted on the same date i.e.28.03.2013 by the ACIT to the Assessing Officer and said approval has been held by the Tribunal in the case of Subhash Dabas order dated 08.09.2021 (supra) and subsequent order dated 09.09.2021 (supra) for A.Y. 2009-10 and 2010-11 & 2011-12 (supra), as has been given without application of mind and thus the same is invalid bad in law and liable to be quashed and Tribunal has quashed the same. Therefore, the application of assesses under Rule 27 of the ITAT Rules is allowed by following the order of ITAT Delhi Bench in the case of Subhash Dabas dated 08.09.2021 for A.Y. 2009- 10(supra) and 09.09.2021 for A.Y. 2010-11 and 2011-12 (supra). We, therefore quash the assessment order passed u/s. 153A of the Act for A.Y. 2010-11 in the case of present assessee i.e. M/s. Tirupati Buildings & Offices Pvt. Ltd. Resultantly, all additions are deleted. The ground raised by the assessee under Rule 27 of the ITAT Rules is accordingly allowed." 8. Thus, this issue is squarely stand covered in favour of the assessee by the decision of the ITAT above. The ITAT after examining the approval which included inter alia the name of the ass....