2025 (9) TMI 1488

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..... 2. Since the issues are common and the appeals are connected, hence the same are heard together and being disposed off by this common order. We take up the assessee's appeal being ITA No.435/Del/2025 for AY 2019-20 as lead case to adjudicate the issues under consideration. 3. At the outset, ld. AR of the assessee pressed Ground Nos.2 & 3 which are reproached as under :- "2. That without prejudice considering the facts and circumstances of the case and in law, the Ld. CIT (A) grossly erred in not rendering the notice issued under section 153C and consequent assessment bad in law as the satisfaction note recorded by the Ld. AO is invalid, bad in law and void ab initio. 3. That on the facts and circumstances of the ca....

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....lled 'satisfaction note' was vague, generic, and failed to establish any nexus between the seized material and the assessment year in question. It did not identify the specific documents, the assessment year to which they pertained, or demonstrate how they related to the assessee, and further the Tribunal held that mere mechanical reproduction of allegations without application of mind cannot confer valid jurisdiction under Section 153C. He submitted that relying on binding precedents, including those of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court, the Tribunal concluded that the satisfaction note was non-descript, cryptic, and legally untenable, thereby vitiating the very foundation of the assessment proceedings. He submitted that on merits, ....

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....he notice issued u/s 153C and consequent assessment order passed u/s 153C is vitiated in law and requires to be quashed. The relevant findings of the aforesaid decision of the Tribunal are as under :- "22. The observation of the Hon'ble Delhi High Court noted above, clearly provides vehement support to the plea taken by the assessee on aspects of jurisdiction flowing from 'satisfaction note'. The 'satisfaction note' under scrutiny defies most of the parameters expected of him while drawing satisfaction. While exercising the power under section 153C of the Act, neither has the AO related the material found in the course of search with a particular A Y while making a consolidated 'satisfaction note' nor pr....

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....Tribunal, we hold that the assumption of jurisdiction under Section 153C of the Act in the present case is equally vitiated and, therefore, liable to be quashed. We hold and order accordingly. 8. Since we have quashed the assessment order on the legal issue, the other grounds raised by the assessee were not adjudicated at this stage. These are kept open. 9. In the result, the appeal of the assessee for AY 2019-20 is allowed. 10. With regard to appeal filed by the assessee for AY 2020-21, since the facts are exactly similar to AY 2019-20 our above findings in Assessment Year 2019-20 are applicable mutatis mutandis in AY 2020-21. Accordingly, the appeal filed by the assessee for AY 2020-21 is allowed. 11. With regard to appeal for....

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....C), leads to a clear understanding that in the case of a Section 153C assessment, the starting point is ordained to be the handing over of books of account or documents or assets seized and that event constituting the point from which the preceding six AYs' or the "relevant assessment year" is to be computed. We observe that in the facts of the present case, the satisfaction note in the case of the assessee was recorded on, and thus 10.01.2022, could be stated to be date of handing over as per the provisions of section 153C of the Act. We observe that assuming the date 10.01.2022, to be the date of handing over it would construe FY 2021- 22 as being the previous year of search for the purposes of the assessee and the relevant AY for the....