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2019 (6) TMI 347 - AT - Income TaxUnexplained investment in jewellery and silver articles - Claimed by the appellant to have been received from friends and relatives on marriage and other occasion - search and seizure action u/s 132 - jewellery is personal wearing - what is the reasonable quantity of jewellery which can be considered as acquired/received by the assessee over the period of time and which can be considered as explained for tax purposes? - HELD THAT:- The assessee is married for last 30 years and the family of the assessee consists of his wife, three daughters out of which two are unmarried and one unmarried son. It is not in dispute that the assessee over the period of time had purchased some gold jewellery for himself and his family members, and further customary possession of gold jewellery/silver items on account of marriage gifts and gifts on other social occasions and festivities to the assessee and his family members cannot be denied. The statement of the assessee has to be read as a whole and not in parts. The Revenue cannot take the stand that only part of the statement is accepted and remaining is not acceptable. Where the Revenue disputes a part of the statement as not correct, the onus shifts on the Revenue to prove otherwise and not the assessee. Therefore, going strictly by clause (i) of the CBDT Circular dated 11.05.1994, the gold jewellery found in possession of the assessee is within the permissible limits as belonging to the assessee and other family members including married daughter and children. The assessee belongs to a reputed old Jagirdar family and so enjoying high status in society, married about 30 years back and has three daughters and one son and possession of gold and silver jewellery is customary in the Indian society and also gifts on marriages and other social functions. The Courts have held that where the CBDT looking to such customs and practices prevailing throughout India, in one way or the another, came out with this Circular and the search team makes no such seizure effectively accepting the status of the assessee, customs and practices and possession of the jewellery, it should also mean that to the extent of the aforesaid jewellery, found in possession of the assessee, even source cannot be questioned. In the present case, looking at the status of the family and the jewellery found during the search, it was held to be reasonable and therefore, the search team, in the first instance, did not seize the said jewellery and thus, in our view, subsequent addition is also not justified on the part of the Assessing Officer. Similar is the position regarding silver jewellery and items found in possession of the assessee in respect of which the source can be said to be duly explained. See CIT., ALWAR VERSUS SATYA NARAIN PATNI [2014 (5) TMI 1002 - RAJASTHAN HIGH COURT]. The the matter is decided in favour of the assessee and against the Revenue.
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