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2013 (5) TMI 665 - HC - Income TaxReopening of assessment - unaccounted bad debts/ advances written off - Held that:- In the present case AO had clearly raised a specific query with regard to bad debts/ advances written off and the petitioner/assessee had given details in respect thereof. It is obvious that since no such addition was made on that count, the AO had considred and examined the position and held in favour of the petitioner/assessee. Therefore, it can be safely concluded that, in the facts and circumstances of the present case, the assessing officer had, indeed, examined the issue at the time of the original assessment proceedings and had formed an opinion by not making any addition in respect thereof. Thus, the reopening of the assessment which had been concluded on 13.03.2006, would be nothing but a mere change of opinion. Revenue's submission that the point of bad debts written off may have been missed by the AO inasmuch as the present case was a complicated matter - Held that:- AO had finally raised only 4 issues, one of them being the issue of bad debt/advances written off. Therefore, it is not as if the AO had lost sight of the issue of bad debts/advances. In fact, he had specifically raised queries in this regard towards the fag end of the assessment proceedings and therefore it must be presumed that he was very much alive to the issue. Also in the reasons recorded for reopening AO does not says that he missed it as it revealed that AO in the second round was of the view that the addition should have been made in respect of bad debts/advances amounting to Rs. 40 lakhs because of the fact that it was on the capital account. Had the assessing officer felt that this point had been missed out in the first round he would have been stated so. The reasons as recorded also belie the contention raised by the respondent. Thus the notice u/s 148 is invalid - In favour of assessee.
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