TMI Blog2013 (12) TMI 1252X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ollowing Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax v. Dhariya Construction Co. [2010 (2) TMI 612 - Supreme Court of India] - The DVO's report per se is not an information for the purposes of reopening assessment under Section 147 of the Act - The Assessing Officer has to apply his mind on the information, if any, collected and must form a belief thereon on reopening the assessment - There has to be something more than the report of DVO for the belief of the Assessing Officer - Decided against Revenue. - Income Tax Appeal No. - 486 of 2008, Income Tax Appeal No. - 347 of 2011, Income Tax Appeal No. - 344 of 2011, Income Tax Appeal No. - 609 of 2011 - - - Dated:- 24-7-2012 - Hon'ble Sunil Ambwani And Hon'ble Aditya Nath Mittal,JJ. For the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... etting aside the orders, based on reports of D.V.O. 5. In Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax v. Dhariya Construction Co. (2010) 328 ITR 515 (SC) the Supreme Court, in its short order dated 16.2.2010, held as follows:- "Having examined the record, we find that in this case, the Department sought reopening of the assessment based on the opinion given by the District Valuation Officer (DVO). The opinion of the DVO per se is not an information for the purposes of reopening assessment under section 147 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The Assessing Officer has to apply his mind to the information, if any, collected and must form a belief thereon. In the circumstances, there is no merit in the civil appeal. The Department was not entitled to re ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Valuation Officer and had participated in the proceedings. The Court distinguished the judgments in Ram Swarup Cold Storage and Allied Industries v. Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax and another 192 ITR 537 and in Britannia Industries Ltd v. Deputy Commissioner of Income-Tax and others 238 ITR 57 on the grounds that the word 'reason to believe', is not the established fact of escapement of income. At the stage of issue of notice, the only question is whether there was relevant material on which a reasonable person could have formed the requisite belief. Whether such material would conclusively prove escapement of income is not the concern at that stage. The formation of the belief is within the realm of the subjective satisfaction of t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... High Courts including this Court that the DVO's report per se is not an information for the purposes of reopening assessment under Section 147 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The Assessing Officer has to apply his mind on the information, if any, collected and must form a belief thereon on reopening the assessment. 11. In all these cases, the assessment was reopened and that the Tribunal found that the additions were made only on the basis of the opinion of DVO and not on any material collected. The Tribunal also found that there was no good reason to escalate the value of constructions to reduce the fee paid to architect, and the cost of supervision. 12. The judgment of Apex Court in Assistant Commissioner of Income-Tax v. Dhariya Constr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
