Section 153D approval requires independent, year-wise scrutiny; mechanical consolidated approval invalidates the resulting search assessment order.

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....Section 153D approval of draft search-assessment orders operates as a safeguard against arbitrary assessment and requires independent application of mind to the material and reasoning for each assessment year. A consolidated approval that does not record examination or movement of files, provide separate year-wise approvals, or state reasons is mechanical and fails the prior-approval requirement. Such defective approval invalidates the consequential assessment order; the assessment was therefore treated as void and quashed, while the remaining grounds were left open.....