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2019 (5) TMI 297 - AT - Income TaxValidity of Assessment u/s 153C - recording of satisfaction of AO of assessee or AO of search person - no specific satisfaction recorded by the AO as to how the seized material belonged to the assessee - HELD THAT: - The satisfaction note was apparently recorded by the Assessing Officer of the assessee and not by the Assessing Officer of the searched person as required by the provision of section 153C. A perusal of the said note, which is reproduced hereinabove, shows that the documents referred therein and identified as IIPL/13 to IIPL/19 were found and impounded during the course of survey operation carried out at the business premises of the assessee and there is no specific reference in the said satisfaction note to any documents found during the course of search and seizure action conducted in Prakash Group of cases. There is nothing even to indicate as to how these vaguely referred documents were found to be belonging to the assessee. There is no recording about the contents of these documents allegedly pertaining to the assessee and AO nowhere has explained the steps taken by him to determine that the seized material belonged to the assessee. There is no specific satisfaction recorded by the Assessing Officer as to how the seized material belonged to the assessee. There is a failure on the part of the AO to provide clear and cogent reasons, which can explain why the seized material belonged to the assessee apart from saying that the documents belonged to the assessee and he was satisfied that it was a fit case for issuing of notice u/s 153C - If all these facts of the case are considered in the light of the decision of the Hon’ble Delhi High Court in the case of N.S. Softwares [2018 (4) TMI 1005 - DELHI HIGH COURT] and Pepsi Foods Pvt. Limited [2014 (8) TMI 425 - DELHI HIGH COURT] , we find that the satisfaction recorded by the Assessing Officer is neither adequate nor proper and since it does not meet the requirement of the concept of satisfaction as used in section 153C, we hold that the initiation of proceedings u/s 153C itself was bad-in-law and the assessments completed in pursuance of such initiation are liable to be cancelled being invalid - Decided in favour of assessee.
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