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2022 (4) TMI 628 - HC - Income TaxValidity of reopening of assessment u/s 147 - Reassessment on the basis of information received from the ADIT (Inv.) Kolkata and ACIT New Delhi and the ITO Kolkata, regarding routing of funds in the garb of share premium - HELD THAT:- We find that the facts regarding the petitioner’s dealings with shell companies for routing its own unaccounted money into its books of accounts had not been truly and fully disclosed by the petitioner during the original assessment and scrutiny assessment, though the information was embedded in the records produced before the A.O. and could be found out on a detailed scrutiny and investigation. On the basis of information received subsequently, the A.O. has formulated a reason to believe that the petitioner’s income has escaped assessment and this reason cannot be said to have been formulated on the basis of information already available before the A.O. Therefore, the submission to this effect made by the learned Counsel for the petitioner cannot be accepted. Whether initiation of the proceedings u/s 147 / 148 of the Act is based on a review of the existing material, which is not permissible in law? - From the discussion made above, it is clear that the fact that the petitioner had routed its undisclosed funds through entry providers and absorbed it in its books of accounts by way of accommodation entries of pre-arranged share application money and share premium with the help of a syndicate of operators and thus an unaccounted money of the petitioner was routed to its books of accounts, had not been examined by the AO during the original assessment for want of a full and true disclosure of facts by the petitioner. Therefore, the A.O. did not examine the aforesaid issues and he did not form an opinion regarding the same during the original assessment proceedings. Keeping into view the scope of power of judicial review while scrutinizing a notice issued under Section 148 of the Act as explained in Raymond woolen Mills Ltd. [1997 (12) TMI 12 - SUPREME COURT] and Phool Chand Bajarang Lal [1993 (7) TMI 1 - SUPREME COURT] and Srikrishna[1996 (7) TMI 2 - SUPREME COURT], we do not have to give a final decision as to whether there is suppression of material facts by the assessee or not and the sufficiency or correctness of the material need not be considered at this stage. In the instant case, the notice under Section 148 of the Act has been issued by the assessing officer after receipt of information and conducting an investigation and after forming a reason to believe that the petitioner did not truly and fully disclose all the material facts because of which income amounting to ₹ 95,00,000/- has escaped assessment. We are satisfied that there is prima facie material available on record before the assessing officer for issuing a notice for reassessment. Thus, the notice under Section 148 passed by the National Faceless Assessment Centre rejecting the petitioner’s objections against issuance of the notice, do not suffer from any such illegality as to warrant interference by this Court in exercise of its Writ Jurisdiction.
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