TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (9) TMI 1052
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....3) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 ('Act' for short) by making certain additions. Aggrieved by the assessment order dated 24/12/2018, the Assessee preferred an Appeal before the Ld. CIT(A). The Ld. CIT(A) vide order dated 28/10/2022 dismissed the Appeal of the Assessee. As against the order of the Ld. CIT(A), the Assessee filed the present Appeal. 4. The Assessee challenged the assessment proceedings in Ground No. 2 & 3 of the Assessee contending that the approval u/s 153D of the Act is a mechanical and arbitrary approval without their being any application of mind and also without satisfying the statutory preconditions of the Act as such the assessment so framed is null and void. 5. The Ld. Departmental Representative submitted that the draft assessment order has been perused by the Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Central Range-4, New Delhi while according the approval u/s 153D of the Act and the approval has been granted strictly in accordance with the provisions of the Act and there is no absence of application of mind, thus sought for dismissal of the Ground No. 2 & 3 of the Assessee. 6. We have carefully considered the submissions of the parties and also ve....
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....5-16 153C/143(3) 11 Navdisha International Marketing Pvt. Ltd. AAECN7388M 2016-17 143(3) 12 M/s Bell Flower Infrabuild Pvt. Ltd. AACCB9618E 2010-11 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 13 M/s Bell Flower Infrabuild Pvt. Ltd. AACCB9618E 2016-17 143(3) 14 M/s First Choice Propbuild Pvt. Ltd. AABCF0130A 2010-11 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 15 M/s First Choice Propbuild Pvt. Ltd. AABCF0130A 2016-17 143(3) 16 M/s Himgiri Infrabuild Pvt. Ltd. AABCH7493L 2010-11 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 17 M/s Himgiri Infrabuild Pvt. Ltd. AABCH7493L 2016-17 143(3) 18 M/s J.K. Vehicles Finance Pvt. Ltd. AAACJ3556F 2010-11 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 19 M/s J.K. Vehicles Finance Pvt. Ltd. AAACJ3556F 2016-17 143(3) 20 M/s Panik Builders Pvt. Ltd. AAGCP1086/ 2012-13 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 21 M/s Panik Builders Pvt. Ltd. AAGCP1086N 2016-17 143(3) 22 M/s Melody Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. AAJCM3652Q 2014-15 to 2015-16 153C/143(3) 23 M/s Melody Enterprises Pvt. Ltd. o AAJCM3652Q 2015-16 143(3) Private Limited 24 M/s Daze Construction Pvt. Ltd. ....
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.... Central Range-4, New Delhi 8. On a perusal of the approval dated 24/12/2018 addressed by ACIT Central Range-4, New Delhi to the Addl. CIT, Central Circle-13, New Delhi, it emerges that the Addl. CIT, has not uttered a word on the subject matter of additions. The approval is in the nature of Performa approval; the approval granted smacks of mechanical or perfunctory approval in a symbolic exercise of powers vested under s. 153D of the Act. Apart from the same, a single approval has been granted for 49 Assessee involving several Assessment Years. 9. The Hon'ble Jurisdictional High Court in the case of Pr. Commissioner of Income Tax Vs. Shiv Kumar Nayyar (supra) held as under:- "11. A plain reading of the aforesaid provision evinces an uncontrived position of law that the approval under Section 153D of the Act has to be granted for "each assessment year" referred to in clause (b) of sub-section (1) of Section 153A of the Act. It is beneficial to refer to the decision of the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad in the case of PCIT v. Sapna Gupta [2022 SCC OnLine All 1294] which captures with precision the scope of the concerned provision and more significantly, the....
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....records of 85 cases in a single day. It was explicitly held that the authority granting approval has to apply its mind for "each assessment year" for "each assessee" separately. 13. Reliance can also be placed upon the decision of the Orissa High Court in the case of Asst. CIT v. Serajuddin and Co. [2023 SCC OnLineOri 992] to understand the exposition of law on the issue at hand. Paragraph no.22 of the said decision reads as under:- "22. As rightly pointed out by learned counsel for the assessee there is not even a token mention of the draft orders having been perused by the Additional Commissioner of Income-tax. The letter simply grants an approval. In other words, even the bare minimum requirement of the approving authority having to indicate what the thought process involved was is missing in the aforementioned approval order. While elaborate reasons This is a digitally signed order. The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above. The Order is downloaded from the DHC Server on 20/05/2024 at 21:34:51 need not be given, there has to be some indication that the approving authority ha....
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..../05/2024 at 21:34:51 that a letter dated 30.12.2018 was filed by the ld. AO before the ld. Addl. CIT seeking approval of draft assessment order u/s 153D of the Act. The ld. Addl. CIT has accorded approval for the said draft assessment orders on the very same day i.e., on 30.12.2018 for seven assessment years in the case of the assessee and for seven assessment years in the case of Smt. NeetuNayyar. It is also pertinent in this regard to refer to pages 68 and 69 of the paper book which contains information obtained by Smt. NeetuNayyar from Central Public Information Officer who is none other than the ld. Addl. Commissioner of Income-tax, Central Range-S, New Delhi, under Right to Information Act, wherein, it reveals that the ld. Addl. CIT had granted approval for 43 cases on 30.12.2018 itself. This fact is not in dispute before us. Of these 43 cases, as evident from page 36 of the paper book which contains the approval u/s 153D, 14 cases pertained to the assessee herein and Smt. NeetuNayyar. The remaining cases may belong to some other assessee's, which information is not available before us. In any event, whether it is humanly possible for an approving authority like ld. Addl. CIT ....