2021 (10) TMI 499 - ITAT MUMBAI

Addition u/s. 68 - Accommodation entries taken by assessee - initial burden to prove - assessee’s name appeared in the list of beneficiaries who have taken loans from the concerns operated by the PKJ - addition made as no evidence to say transactions are genuine, creditors identity and creditworthiness is not proved - HELD THAT:- AO has gone only by the statement recorded from Shri Pravin Kumar Jain who said to have been deposed that he is only providing accommodation entries and no real business is carried on by the entities. AO has not made any efforts to make independent enquiries with the lender company - AO has not provided the statements of Shri Pravin Kumar Jain to the assessee for his rebuttal.

Nothing is placed on record to suggest that the information furnished by the assessee in the form of copy of affidavit, establishing identify of the lender, copy of the ledger giving details of loans confirmation taken and also repayment in subsequent years, copy of bank statement highlighting the natures of loan taken and repayment in subsequent years to establish the genuineness of the transactions copy of ITR–V filed establishing creditworthiness of the lender are non-genuine. The assessee has discharged his primary onus on providing complete details in respect of the loan transaction and the Assessing Officer failed to carry out any fruitful investigation. Therefore, no addition can be made towards unexplained unsecured loan.

In the case on hand assessee provided various evidences to establish the transactions are genuine, creditors identity and creditworthiness is proved by providing all the information to the Assessing Officer the assessee has discharged the initial onus of providing genuineness of the transactions under u/s 68 - once the initial burden is discharged by the assessee the burden shifts to the revenue to disprove the claim of the assessee. It is noticed that AO did not make any sort of enquiries to disprove the genuineness of the transaction on the evidences furnished by the assessee. He has completely ignored even the statement retracted by the PKJ. The addition is made merely on surmises and conjectures without probing further by the Assessing Officer. - Decided in favour of assessee.