INCOME TAX ACT, 1961

Section 153A Section 153D

Search and seizure - Assessment under section 153A - Invalid and incomplete approval under section 153D -

Assessee filed its return of income in pursuant to the notice issued under section 153A. Assessment order had been passed after obtaining approval of the Jt. CIT, Central Range, Meerut. AR argued to admit the additional grounds filed before the Tribunal. Assessment framed under section 153A/143(3) for the period under consideration (assessment year 2012-13) was void ab initio being passed on basis of invalid and incomplete and inchoate approval under section 153D, by Jt. CIT, Central Range, Meerut and assessment framed as confirmed by CIT(A) deserves to be quashed and assessment may be declared as nullity. Held: In the instant case, the approving authority had clearly mentioned that the approval given was a technical approval. Moreover, he had directed the Deputy Commissioner to ensure the seized materials and the findings of the appraisal report to be incorporated in the final assessment order. This clearly goes to prove that approval given by the Jt. CIT was not a final approval as required under section 153D but a conditional approval subjected to modifications by the Dy. CIT after receiving of the approval which makes it an invalid, qualified, uncertain approval. This is not the mandate of the Act. It had also been laid down that whenever any statutory obligation is cast upon any authority, such authority is legally required to discharge the obligation by application of mind. Approval had to be statutory nature after due application of mind, it should be neither technical nor proforma approval which is envisaged under section 153D. The assessments completed by the Dy. CIT did not stand in the eyes of law. Since the orders have been treated as null and void, any adjudication on other issues would be academic in nature only, hence the Court refrained to do so.

Followed:NTPC v. CIt (1998) 229 ITR 383 (SC) : 1998 TaxPub(DT) 342 (SC), Delhi ITAT in case of M3M India Holdings Order, dated 15-3-2019 in ITA 269/Del/2018 and Pr. CIT v. Smt. Shreelekha Damani ITA No. 668 of 2016, dated 27-11-2018.

REFERRED : Singhad Technical Society (2017) 397 ITR 344 (SC) : 2017 TaxPub(DT) 3941 (SC), Fast Booking (I) (P) Ltd., (2015) 378 ITR 693 (Del) : 2015 TaxPub(DT) 3589 (Del-HC), Silver Line (2016) 383 ITR 455 (Del) : 2016 TaxPub(DT) 597 (Del-HC), VMT Spinning Co. Ltd. (2016) 389 ITR 326 (P&H) : 2016 TaxPub(DT) 4428 (P&H-HC), Jolly Fantasy World Ltd. (2015) 373 ITR 530 (Guj) : 2015 TaxPub(DT) 1602 (Guj-HC), CIT v. Lalitkumar Bardia (2017) 84 Taxmann.com 213 (Bom) : 2017 TaxPub(DT) 2052 (Bom-HC) and Jodhpur Bench in Smt. Indira Bansal v. Asstt. CIT (2018) 192 TTJ 968 (Jodh-Trib) and Cuttack Bench ITAT Sri Trinadh Chowdary IT (S)A No. 44 to 46/CTK/2016 27-9-2018.

FAVOUR : In assessee's favour.

A.Y. : 2012-13

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