TMI Blog2017 (2) TMI 724X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... .JUSTICE M.R. SHAH) 1.0. As common question of law and facts arise in this group of appeals, they are disposed of by this common judgment and order. 2.0. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned common judgment and order passed by the learned Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, C Bench, Ahmedabad, passed in IT (SS) A Nos. 138 to 141/AHD/2011 for AY 200102 to 200405, by which, the learned Tribunal has allowed the said appeals and has directed to AO to delete the addition made under Section 153 A of the Act for AY 200001 to 200405, the Revenue has preferred present Appeals with the following proposed questions of law. A.Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is correct in narrowing down the scope of assessment u/s 153 A in respect of completed assessments by holding that only undisclosed income and undisclosed assets detected during the search could be brought to tax ? B. Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is correct in law in holding that the scope of Section 153 A is limited to assessing only search related income, thereby denying Revenue the opportunity of taxing o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion made by the AO while framing assessment under Section 153 A of the Act, the Revenue has preferred present Tax Appeals with the following proposed questions of law . A.Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is correct in narrowing down the scope of assessment u/s 153 A in respect of completed assessments by holding that only undisclosed income and undisclosed assets detected during the search could be brought to tax ? B. Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is correct in law in holding that the scope of Section 153 A is limited to assessing only search related income, thereby denying Revenue the opportunity of taxing other escaped income that comes to the notice of the Assessing Officer ? C. Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal was right in limiting the scope of Section 153 A only to undisclosed income when as per the section the Assessing Officer has to assess the total income of the six assessment years ? D.Whether the findings of the Tribunal that no incriminating material is found is perverse in as much as incriminating ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n is made, a mandate is cast upon the Assessing Officer to issue notice under section 153A of the Act to the person, requiring him to furnish the return of income in respect of each assessment year falling within six assessment years immediately preceding the assessment year relevant to the previous year in which such search is conducted or requisition is made and assess or reassess the same. Since the assessment under section 153A of the Act is linked with search and requisition under sections 132 and 132A of the Act, it is evident that the object of the section is to bring to tax the undisclosed income which is found during the course of or pursuant to the search or requisition. However, instead of the earlier regime of block assessment whereby, it was only the undisclosed income of the block period that was assessed, section 153A of the Act seeks to assess the total income for the assessment year, which is clear from the first proviso thereto which provides that the Assessing Officer shall assess or reassess the total income in respect of each assessment year falling within such six assessment years. The second proviso makes the intention of the legislature clear as the same pro ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ch is conducted or requisition is made, any addition or disallowance can be made only on the basis of material collected during the search or requisition. In case no incriminating material is found, as held by the Rajasthan High Court in the case of Jai Steel (India), Jodhpur v. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax (supra), the earlier assessment would have to be reiterated. In case where pending assessments have abated, the Assessing Officer can pass assessment orders for each of the six years determining the total income of the assessee which would include income declared in the returns, if any, furnished by the assessee as well as undisclosed income, if any, unearthed during the search or requisition. In case where a pending reassessment under section 147 of the Act has abated, needless to state that the scope and ambit of the assessment would include any order which the Assessing Officer could have passed under section 147 of the Act as well as under section 153A of the Act. 19.On behalf of the appellant, it has been contended that if any incriminating material is found, notwithstanding that in relation to the year under consideration, no incriminating material is found ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Act and on the basis of the material on record, the assessment was framed for AY 200405. On the basis of some incriminating material found / detected during the search on 10.02.2006, which was for the period of !Y 200405 onwards and in absence of any specific incriminating material detected for the AY 200405, the AO was not justified in making any addition. Therefore, even Tax Appeal No. 57 of 2017 shall also be covered while considering Tax Appeal No. 54 to 56 of 2017 for AY 200102 to 200304. It is to be noted that for the AY 200405 which was part of the block assessment and assessment under Section 153 A of the Act on the basis of search conducted on 10.02.2006. 6.0. In view of the above and for the reasons stated above and considering the binding decisions of this Court in the case of Jay Infrastructure and Properties Pvt Ltd (supra) and Saumya Construction Pvt Ltd (supra) and decision of the Delhi High Court in the case of Commissioner of Income Tax (Central) III vs. Kabul Chawla reported in (2015) 61 Taxmann. Com 412 (Delhi), we see no reason to interfere with the impugned judgment and order passed by the learned Tribunal. No substantial question of law arise in this group ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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