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2020 (6) TMI 157 - HC - Income TaxAdditions made in the Block Assessment in respect of investments found as a result of the search - claim of the assessee that the Investments came out of withdrawals of deposits made in fictitious names in four finance firms - Tribunal held that since the existence of HUF of Dr.Rajkumar was admitted by the Assessing Authority himself during the course of course of Assessment, the additions of the undisclosed income should not be made in the individual hands of both the Assessees - HELD THAT:- Merely because the Assessees' names are included in the Financial Firms alleged to have been run by the HUF and the name of the Assessee, Dr.N.Rajkumar was included as a Managing Parter of the Firms run by the Family, (one does not know what about the professional misconduct by him of being a Professional Doctor and doing the Business) it does not mean that the entire undisclosed income could be attributed to such Financial Firms and even their Deposits and Withdrawals in the fictitious names could be believed as Gospel Truth forming basis of the explained cash available at the beginning of the Block Period in the hands of HUF of Assessee Dr.Rajkumar. If such explanations were to be treated as pieces of evidence and believable facts in Search cases, such false and flimsy defences can be created in almost all Search cases rendering all the Assessments of undisclosed income nugatory exercise altogether. The admission of the Assessee, which was the best evidence against him, that the Deposits in the Financial Firms and withdrawals thereof were in the fictitious names itself was sufficient to treat the same as Undisclosed Income (UDI) in the hands of the Assessees and that is what the Assessing Authority has done. But, surprisingly for the Grounds raised before the learned Tribunal that the undisclosed income did not belong to the Assessees in their Individual capacity but it could be attributed to the HUF of Dr.N.Rajkumar, one of the Assessees, the learned Tribunal, in our opinion, fell in the error in upholding such a contention made on behalf of the Assessees merely because HUF of Assessee might have existed. We do not think that such finding of facts, if at all they can be called as one, can be sustained in the Appeals filed by the Revenue aggrieved by such orders of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal. We are not able to, with great respects, subscribe to such findings returned by the learned Tribunal especially reversing the findings of the two Authorities below. While, a fact finding Body is expected to give its own reasons even in affirming the findings of the Authorities below, the burden is heavier for the higher Appellate Authority when it decides to reverse the findings of the Authorities below. We are not able to reconcile the such alleged reasons, which prompted the learned Tribunal to reverse the findings of the two Authorities below in the present cases and therefore, we are unable to sustain the said order of the learned Tribunal. With the above observations, we have no other option but to allow the present Appeals filed by the Revenue. Accordingly, the Appeals filed by the Revenue are allowed.
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