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2019 (7) TMI 1325 - HC - Income TaxDisallowance of commission expenditure - Rule of consistency - the commission amounts were deposited on a particular date and within two day the same or marginally higher amounts were withdrawn - HELD THAT:- This Court notices that the issue of disallowance has been consistently and concurrently ruled against the assessee. The CIT(A) in this regard noticed that the assessee was impressed upon with the need for verification of commission expenses repeatedly in December, 2016 and January, 2017. Despite this, the assessee did not produce a single witness. Summons were issued to ten witnesses under Section 131. Three from the list of ten persons replied. None of these individuals, in fact, appeared before the AO for verification and inquiry. Even the replies by the three parties were unsatisfactory. On this aspect, this Court notice that CIT(A) has extracted relevant details with respect to the concerned parties which shows, prima facie, that the amounts were deposited on a particular date and within two day the same or marginally higher amounts were withdrawn. This Court is of the opinion that all three authorities i.e. AO, CIT(A) and ITAT scrutinized the record and held that the commission claimed, was not supportable in law and therefore, disallowed the deduction claimed, the only ground on which the court could, if at all entertain the appeal is that the basis for such disallowance was entirely nonexistent. Such an argument in the opinion of the court is insubstantial in cases like present. In court’s opinion, the reliance upon the so called rule of consistency in Radhasoami Satsang [1991 (11) TMI 2 - SUPREME COURT] did not bar the revenue authorities from carrying out their task independently and as they did discharge in respect of the assessment in question. That in the past year or years, the orders made no doubt provide a guide as to the nature of business and the manner in which the assessing authorities adopted the method of assessing income. The method adopted by AO for completing the task, however, does not preclude in any manner the conducting of independent scrutiny of the material presented before the assessee in later years. The rule of consistency in the opinion of the court does not preclude the AO from conducting inquiry which he is bound by law to do, for determining in law what are the true and correct amounts, to determine the amounts legally chargeable as tax - No substantial question of law arises and the appeal is dismissed.
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