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2024 (5) TMI 839 - PUNJAB AND HARYANA HIGH COURTValidity of Assessment u/s 153A - no search conducted u/s 132 and 132A as against the petitioner - authorisation issued to conduct search and seizure relating to the petitioner or not? - relevancy of panchnama as document - HELD THAT:- In the present case, we find that challenge is to the very initiation of proceedings at the initial stage; search under Section 132 of the Act and jurisdiction of the assessing officer by initiating proceedings u/s 153A of the Act which needs to be examined. The validity of initiating search proceedings cannot be examined by the Appellate Authority as is already held in Chandra Kishor Jha. [1999 (9) TMI 948 - SUPREME COURT], OPTO Circuit India Limited [2021 (2) TMI 117 - SUPREME COURT], M/s. J. M. Trading Corporation [2009 (6) TMI 988 - BOMBAY HIGH COURT] and Sarvmangalam Builders’ cases[2015 (12) TMI 1882 - DELHI HIGH COURT] The petitioner has challenged the panchnama where its name has been entered and submits that it has already suffered search and seizure earlier resulting in an order passed under Section 153A of the Act and, therefore, proceedings again initiated under Section 153A were wholly unwarranted. The exercise of power under Section 153A based on panchnama was not available. In the present case, we find that there is no authorisation issued to conduct search and seizure relating to the petitioner. The panchnama prepared at Gurgaon office of M3M India Limited only reflects the name of the petitioner company. The term panchnama is not defined in the Income Tax Act. A panchnama is a document prepared in the ordinary course at a site of incident - panchnama would be a document which has to be prepared recording articles, material and objects which may be seized as incriminating documents at the time of conducting search of premises. Mentioning of the name of any company in the panchnama would only reflect that documents relating to that company were found during the search at the premises. A panchnama, therefore, cannot be treated to mean authorization issued to the authorities u/s 132. Thus we find that the respondents were obliged to compulsorily follow the procedure for reassessment of the petitioner company in the manner as prescribed u/s 153C (1) alone and in no other manner. However, we find that the respondents have invoked and initiated proceedings u/s 153A of the Act, although neither there is any search initiated u/s 132 as against the petitioner nor it can be said that the search was conducted at its premises. Similar view has been taken in Hitesh Ashok Vaswani [2023 (11) TMI 347 - GUJARAT HIGH COURT] and Subhash Khattar’s cases[2017 (7) TMI 1091 - DELHI HIGH COURT] - Thus, the proceedings initiated under Section 153A are found to be vitiated. When there was no search conducted u/s 132 and 132A as against the petitioner and only a panchnama reflects the name of the petitioner prepared at the registered office of M3M India Limited, the action of the respondents in passing second assessment order on 07.02.2024 on the basis of notice u/s 153A is held to be unjustified and without jurisdiction. Assessee appeal allowed.
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