TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (12) TMI 1719
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....on 148A of the Act along with consequential notice dated 19.06.2025, reopening the assessment for the Assessment Year (AY) 2019-20. FACTS: 5. The petitioner is a Managing Director of data processing forms private limited, which is in the business of security printing. He is also a partner in the firms viz., M/s Date International, M/s. Form Stores and M/s. Superb World Biotech LLP. He filed his return of income on 27.08.2019 for AY 2019-20 declaring his total income at Rs. 33,98,400/-. Thereafter on 27.06.2022, summon under section 131(1) of the Act was issued upon him for the FY 2018-19 to 2020-21, to which reply was filed on 04.07.2022. Subsequently, another summon was issued on 30.09.2022 and the same was replied on 20.10.2022. 6. On 30.03.2025, the respondent authority issued the impugned notice under section 148A(1) of the Act stating that the information is received suggesting that during the FY 2018-19, the petitioner has undertaken transactions of Rs. 37,40,31,604/- (Rs. 18,70,59,704/- debit and Rs. 18,69,71,900/- credit). The petitioner sought short adjournment to supply the details called on 15.04.2025, which was granted vide reply dated 16.04.2025. He filed deta....
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....is submitted that the AO has precisely invoked the provisions of section 148A of the Act. 10. Learned Senior Standing Counsel has also referred to the explanation tendered by the petitioner and while referring to the same, it is submitted that the petitioner has admitted that since he was not carrying on any personal business, he was not required to maintain personal books of account and hence, there is no question of furnishing copies of capital account, balance sheet and profit and loss account, which would show that the transactions, which were high value transaction, cannot be said to be dubious and further assessment proceedings may disclose that such transactions were made for showing accommodation entries. It is submitted that the credit and debit transactions appearing in the bank account of the petitioner refer to unsecured loans taken by him from time to time from various persons and repayment, all through banking channels only, details of which are yet to be collected. He has submitted that since the petitioner has not disclosed about borrowing of the funds in order to acquire additional shares of Data Processing Form Private Limited and details of repayment, he may b....
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....sment in his case for the relevant AY. Although the bank has reported high risk transactions considering the total amount involved in the bank statement having regard to the details and the evidence, it was urged that there is no information, which may suggest that the income chargeable to tax has escaped the assessment. 15. The petitioner is further called upon to clarify certain points with regard to information/details received by the AO and furnish data collected on such verification inquiry. When such explanations were supplied to the AO, the same were not considered and ultimately, the order under the provisions of section 148A(3) of the Act was passed on 19.06.2025. 16. It is interesting to note that the AO has acknowledged the production of documents of the respective parties, which include the bank opening/closing balances, receipts and payments of Income Tax Return however, the assessment proceedings re-continued only for verification for authenticity of declared transactions. 17. We have also considered the transactions in questions and the bank statements. It is noticed by us that the amounts, which have been borrowed, have been repaid by the petitioner and it ....
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....nity of being heard to the assessee, by serving upon him a notice to show cause within such time, as may be specified in the notice, being not less than seven days and but not exceeding thirty days from the date on which such notice is issued, or such time, as may be extended by him on the basis of an application in this behalf, as to why a notice under section 148 should not be issued on the basis of information which suggests that income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment in his case for the relevant assessment year and results of enquiry conducted, if any, as per clause (a)." 9. However, we are of the opinion that before issuance of the notice under Section 148A(1) of the Act, it is the responsibility and liability of the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer to verify the information made available on the Insight Portal which suggests that the income chargeable to tax has escaped assessment in case of the assessee for the relevant Assessment Year and if necessary, the Assessing Officer must conduct inquiry with prior approval of the specified authority with respect to such information and only after verification of the information made available to the Assessing Offic....