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2018 (3) TMI 1089

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..... a reason for rejecting the books of account maintained by the assessee in regular course of business. The same, therefore, could not be taken a valid basis for change of method regularly employed by the appellant. The Income-tax Authority, therefore, has no option or jurisdiction to meddle in the matter either by directing the assessee to maintain its account in a particular manner or adopting a different method for valuing work-in-progress. It also cannot recompute income by adopting any method other than that regularly employed by the appellant in a case like this nor make the same as basis to reject its accounts. - Decided in favour of assessee. - D. B. Income Tax Appeal No. 2/2018 - - - Dated:- 13-3-2018 - K. S. Jhaveri And Vijay Kumar Vyas, JJ. For the Appellant : Mr. Anuroop Singhi with Mr. Aditya Vijay JUDGMENT 1. By way of this appeal, the appellant has challenged the judgment and order of the Tribunal whereby the Tribunal has dismissed the appeal of the Revenue. 2. Counsel for the appellant has framed the following substantial questions of law:- Whether on the facts and circumstances of the case, the Tribunal was justified in deleting the additi .....

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..... ance was placed on the judgment of the Punjab High Court in Pandit Brothers v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Delhi, MANU/PH/0015/1955. The facts in that case were very different. The income-tax Officer there added a certain sum to the assessee's profits on the ground that the expense ratio was too high and the profits disclosed were too low and there was no stock register. The finding in that case was that the assessee maintained regular accounts of his purchases and sales and there was no finding by Income-tax Officer that in his opinion the income could not properly be deduced therefrom. Khosla, J. (as he then was) there said : 'There is no finding that there was material before the Income-tax Officer to lead him to the conclusion that a proper statement of income, profits and gains could not be deduced from the material placed before him. All he said was that the profits appeared to be somewhat low and there was no stock register'. The want of a stock register was, in that particular case, not a very serious defect because the account books had been found and accepted as correct and disclosed a true state of affairs. It cannot therefore be said that that case laid .....

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..... that regard. Suffice it to state that, these new concepts and accounting standards have not been invoked by the Department in the present batch of civil appeals. 4.5 He has further relied upon the decision in the case of (2008) 15 SCC 112 wherein it has been held as under: In cases where the Department wants to tax an assessee on the ground of the liability arising in a particular year, it should always ascertain the method of accounting followed by the assessee in the past and whether change in method of accounting was warranted on the ground that profit is being under estimated under the impugned method of accounting. If the AO comes to the conclusion that there is under estimation of profits, he must give facts and figures in that regard and demonstrate to the Court that the impugned method of accounting adopted by the assessee results in under estimation of profits and is therefore rejected. Otherwise, the presumption would be that the entire exercise is Revenue neutral. 5. Counsel for the appellant has contended that the observations which have been made by the Tribunal in para 12 13 are contrary to law, which reads as under: We have heard parties with .....

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..... ubject to the provisions of sub- section (2), be computed in accordance with either cash or mercantile system of accounting regularly employed by the assessee. (2) The Central Government may notify in the Official Gazette from time to time accounting standards to be followed by any class of assessees or in respect of any class of income. (3) Where the Assessing Officer is not satisfied about the correctness or completeness of the accounts of the assessee, or where the method of accounting provided in sub-section (1) or accounting standards as notified under sub- section (2), have not been regularly followed by the assessee, the Assessing Officer may make an assessment in the manner provided in section 144. 12.2. The first basis taken by the Assessing Authority in reaching a finding that the assessee's accounts do not depict correct and complete picture of its accounts is that the assessee has not maintained a detailed qualitative and quantitative stock register and failed to get the valuation of its closing stock verified with the detailed day-wise qualitative cum quantitative stock register. The appellant's case before the authorities below has, however .....

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..... ell as quantity of different items of stocks including details of direct expenses and costs are required to be maintained meticulously. In fact, the AS-2 notified by the CBDT relates to disclosure of prior period and extra ordinary items and change of accounting policies. The accounts maintained by the assessee- appellant conform to the commercially accepted accounting standards and true profits of assessee's business could be deduced therefrom. The findings reached by the Assessing Officer are thus not factually correct with respect to the lacuna pointed out by him on maintenance of stock record as well as valuation of inventory held by the assessee. 12.3. In the case of Pandit Brothers vs. CIT, MANU/PH/0015/1955MANU/PH/0015/1955 : 26 ITR 159, the Hon'ble Punjab Haryana High Court has held that the mere fact that there is no stock register, it only cautions him against the falsity of the return made by the assessee. He cannot say that merely there is no stock register, the accounts book must be false. The Hon'ble Supreme Court took note of this judgment in the case of S.N. Namasivayam Chettiar vs. CIT, 38 ITR 570 (SC) and held that it is for the Income- tax auth .....

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..... on-money so received was also included as undisclosed income in the return of income so filed by one of the partners. We, therefore, required the Ld. D/R to produce such material and evidence so as to test the correctness of the veracity of the authorities below as the appellant has categorically denied of receipt of any on-money in the joint business carried with his separated brother Shri Ajit Singh and his son. The separation had occasioned in the year 2006 which is a date much prior to the date of action taken under section 132 of the Act on the appellant. From the record produced, we find that it is a correct fact that these two groups have separated from joint business in the year 2006 and thereafter carried business with no interest or involvement of the other brother. This fact, the appellant also disclosed by way of a foot note on the computation of income filed along with return of income. The statements given by Shri Ajit Singh and Shri Ravinder Singh during the course of search admittedly were with regard to receipt of extra money with respect to the flats sold by them. These sales were not of the projects done jointly with the appellant, its constituents or family .....

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..... under section 145(2) of the Act in view of the exercise undertaken by the Assessing Authority to apply percentage of project method that gave a different and positive results revealing more profits taxable in the years under consideration. The Assessing Officer, therefore, changed the method to percentage completion method as against the project completion method regularly employed by the assessee. The admitted position and also the fact is that the appellant has regularly employed project completion method from year to year and the assessments prior to the date of search were also made by accepting project completion method. Both Project Completion method and the Percentage Completion method are recognized methods for assessment of correct income of the assessee under the IT Act, 1961. The choice of method of accounting, however, lies with the assessee. It is not open to the Assessing Officer to change his own opinion or change the method of accounting because he finds another method of accounting better than the one adopted regularly by the assessee and by rejecting his accounts substitute the same with another method of accounting without any just and reasonable cause. In the p .....

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..... ter either by directing the assessee to maintain its account in a particular manner or adopting a different method for valuing work-in- progress. It also cannot recompute income by adopting any method other than that regularly employed by the assessee- appellant in a case like this nor make the same as basis to reject its accounts. 12.11. The Apex Court in the case of CIT vs. McMillan Co. 33 ITR 182 (SC) at page 188 has also entertained this opinion which is evident from the following passage:- The section enacts that for the purposes of section 10 (profits of business, profession or vocation) and section 12 (income from other sources) income, profits and gains must be computed in accordance with the method of accounting regularly employed by the assessee. The choice of the method of accounting lies with the assessee; but the assessee must show that he has followed the method regularly for his own purposes. The section and the proviso read together clearly make such a method of accounting regularly employed by the assessee a compulsory basis of computation unless, in the opinion of the Income-tax Officer, the income, profits and gains cannot properly be deduced therefro .....

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..... e is whether or not the method of accounting followed by the assessee discloses the true income and observed thus (page 51): It is a well-recognised principle of commercial accounting to enter in the profit and loss account the value of the stock-in- trade at the beginning and at the end of the accounting year at cost or market price, which-ever is the lower. The court further considered section 145 of the Act and observed that what is to be determined by the officer in exercise of the power is a question of fact, that is, whether or not income chargeable Under the Act can be properly deduced from the books of account and the question must be decided with reference to the relevant material and in accordance with the correct principles. The court also observed (page 52): Where the market value has fallen before the date of valuation and, on that date, the market value of the article is less than its actual cost, the assessee is entitled to value the articles at market value and thus anticipate the loss which he will probably incur at the time of the sale of the goods. Valuation of the stock-in-trade at cost or market value, whichever is the lower, is a matter entirely .....

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..... 1949] 17 ITR 1 (Mad); (ii) CIT v. Srimati Singari Bai MANU/UP/0354/1954MANU/UP/0354/1954 : [1945] 13 ITR 224 (All); (iii) CIT v. K. Doddabasappa MANU/KA/0021/1963MANU/KA/0021/1963 : [1964] 54 ITR 221 (Mys); and (iv) Juggilal Kamlapat, Bankers v. CIT MANU/UP/0226/1973MANU/UP/0226/1973 : [1975] 101 ITR 40 (All). These are all decisions which lend support to the proposition that the Department is bound by the assessee's choice of accounting regularly employed unless it can be said that the method of accounting followed by the assessee does not reflect the true income. The AAC, as well as the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, after a careful scrutiny, came to the conclusion that the system of accounting employed by the assessee is consistent and regular and the ITO, therefore, is not entitled to interfere with the system of accounting followed by the assessee, unless it is possible for him to make out and bring the case within the terms of s. 145 of the I.T. Act. On this basic issue itself, the Department's contention that the dividend should be assessed in the hands of the assessee as and when it is received, in substitution of the method of accounting followe .....

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..... , the assessee is at liberty to choose any of the above and if any one of the method of accounting is consistently followed by the assessee, the assessing officer cannot change the method of accounting to the percentage of completion method. 12.16. The Hon'ble Delhi High Court while dealing with the similar situation in the case of CIT vs. Manish Buildwell Pvt. Ltd. in ITA No. 928/2011 dated 15.11.2011 held that 'after the above judgment of Supreme Court in CIT vs. Bilahari Investment Pvt. Ltd., 299 ITR 1, it cannot be said that the project completion method followed by the assessee would result in deferment of the payment of taxes which are to be assessed annually under the Income-tax Act. Accounting Standard AS-7 issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India also recognize the position that in the case of construction contracts, the assessee can follow either the project completion method or the percentage completion method. In view of the judgments of the Supreme Court (supra), the findings of CIT (A), upheld by the Tribunal does not give rise to any substantial question of law. Further, the Tribunal has also found that there was no justification on the .....

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..... considered the arguments advanced by counsel for the Revenue and in our view, the Tribunal, which is the ultimate final fact finding authority, after analyzing the material again placed before it and having gone into the issue once again has come to the conclusion that merely because qualitative record was not maintained and on this premise, the books of account could not have been rejected. It is also an admitted fact that mustard seed is only single commodity used by the assessee for manufacturing of mustard oil and the Tribunal noticed that the assessee filed yield percentage for two months before the AO in which no discrepancy was found by the AO. The Tribunal has found that the production of mustard oil is a continuous process and the seeds are put into the milling for continuous oil production. The Tribunal has further found that 8096 of its mustard oil is by way of trading sale and neither discrepancies were noticed by the AO in either purchase or sale nor any sale or purchase, found unrecorded. The Tribunal also found that the books of account had been maintained in the same manner as in the past and the assessee cannot be expected to stop the plant as and when the new lot .....

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..... rting to rejection of books of account, Revenue possibly has no other alternative and come to make estimated addition after resorting to provisions of Sec. 145(3). 8. He has also relied upon the decision of Gujarat High Court in the case of Jaytick Intermediates (P.) Ltd. Vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, (2016) 73 Taxmann.com 195 (Gujarat) wherein in para 8 to 10 it is observed as under: 8. It will not be out of place to mention here that the assessee is a manufacturing unit and it has to pay the excise duty. It is the specific contention of the assessee that the books of accounts maintained by it are tallying and the excise duty is paid on that basis. The stock register is not tallying with the other books of account only because some of the items were not deleted from the stock register. Taking into account the decision of this Court, not maintaining the day-today stock register is not a ground to reject the books of account. In Commissioner of Income-tax-IV v. Symphony Comfort Systems Ltd. (supra), it is observed as under:-- Question No. 1 pertains to the addition made by the Assessing Officer on the basis of low gross profit. The Commissioner (Appeals) as w .....

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..... d that expenses incurred in the preceding assessment year were 2.89% on turnover but in the assessment year under appeal it was 4.78% on the turnover. The expenses were, therefore, found excessive without pointing out as to which of the expenses incurred by the assessee was not connected with the business activity of the assessee. The AO has not pointed out which of the expenditure were not admissible in law. In the absence of any pointing out inadmissible expenses, the AO cannot make addition merely by comparing the expenditure with the preceding year's expenditure. The learned CIT(A) on proper appreciation of the facts and material on record rightly deleted the addition. This ground of appeal of the revenue is accordingly dismissed. The entire issue is based on appreciation of evidence. No question of law arises. When the Commissioner (Appeals) as well as the Tribunal concurrently held that on the basis of the evidence, addition as made by the Assessing Officer was not justified, we are not inclined to interfere. 9. In Commissioner of Income-tax-XII v. Smt. Poonam Rani (supra), it is observed as under:-- 10. During the course of arguments before us, it was s .....

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..... in upholding the action of the Respondent in rejecting the books of accounts of the Assessee under Section 145 (2) of the Act and further erred in confirming the part of the addition on estimated basis against the revenue. Accordingly, Tax Appeal No. 1196 of 2007 is allowed. 9. Therefore, he has contended that the rejection of books of accounts for non maintenance of stock register is not a ground under Section 145(3) of the Act. 10. He has relied upon following decisions: Manjusha Estates Pvt. Ltd. vs. The Income Tax Officer Tax Appeal No.828/2007 [Gujrat High Court], decided on 12.08.2016: 4.1 Learned Counsel for the department has taken this Court to Section 145(3) of the IT Act which relates to rejection of the books of accounts and contended that the CIT(A) as well as the Tribunal has rightly come to the conclusion after considering the material placed before them. After making the aforesaid submissions he has contended that the appeal may be dismissed. 5. Having heard the learned Counsel for the parties and having gone through the order passed by the authorities below, as well as, considering the fact that the assessee has followed the method which is co .....

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..... led legal position as far as Section 145 of the Act is concerned is that it is not open to an AO to reject the accounts of an Assessee unless he comes to a determination that notified accounting standards have not been regularly followed by the Assessee. As pointed out by the CIT (A) in the order dated 2nd July, 2010, the AS of the ICAI did not have any statutory recognition under the Act although it was binding under the Companies Act, 1956. The method of accounting followed by the Assessee in the present case i.e. project completion method was certainly one of the recognized methods and has been consistently followed by it. Lunar Electricals vs. Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax [2012] 2010 Taxman 69 (Delhi): The next aspect relates to rejection of books of accounts because the assessee was following completed contract method. We do not think completed contract method is contrary and cannot be adopted and applied when an assessee follows mercantile system of accounting. This issue was examined by the Madras High Court in Commissioner of Income Tax versus SAS Hotels and Enterprises Limited, MANU/TN/3098/2010 : (2011)334 ITR 194 (Mad.) and it has been held that the sai .....

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..... method distorts the profits of a particular year. Moreover, as held in various judgments, the Chit Scheme is one integrated scheme spread over a period of time, sometimes exceeding 12 months. We have examined computation of tax effect in these cases and we find that the entire exercise is revenue neutral, particularly when the scheme is read as one integrated scheme spread over a period of time. 20. As stated above, we are concerned with assessment years 1991-1992 to 1997-1998. In the past, the Department had accepted the completed contract method and because of such acceptance, the assessees, in these cases, have followed the same method of accounting, particularly in the context of chit discount. Every assessee is entitled to arrange its affairs and follow the method of accounting, which the Department has earlier accepted. It is only in those cases where the Department records a finding that the method adopted by the assessee results in distortion of profits, the Department can insist on substitution of the existing method. Further, in the present cases, we find from the various statements produced before us, that the entire exercise, arising out of change of method from c .....

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..... the assessing officer that the assessee was adopting a method of accounting namely the project completion method, to suit its convenience to book income was baseless. A further finding recorded by the CIT (A) is that there was no manipulation in the books of accounts. So far as the method of accounting is concerned, the CIT (A) held that the project completion method is a wellrecognized and accepted method of accounting and was the only method suitable for any developer who has to deliver a completed product to the buyer. Ultimately the CIT (A) held as under: Thus on overall perusal of the assessment order it is seen that neither any defect has been pointed out by the assessing officer in the method of accounting followed by the appellant nor any finding has been given that true and fair profits cannot be deduced following the said method of accounting. No evidence was found during the course of search to show that the books of account are not properly maintained by the appellant. The main thrust of the assessing officer in making the addition is that the assessee is deferring the payment of taxes. But this allegation of the assessing officer cannot be accepted as the assessee .....

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..... of the results of the contract. On the other hand, the percentage of completion method tries to attain periodic recognition of income in order to reflect current performance. The amount of revenue recognized under this method is determined by reference to the stage of completion of the contract. The stage of completion can be looked at under this method by taking into consideration the proportion that costs incurred to date bears to the estimated total costs of contract. The above indicates the difference between the completed contract method and the percentage of completion method. (underlining ours) 9. After the above judgments of the Supreme Court it cannot be said that the project completion method followed by the assessee would result in deferment of the payment of the taxes which are to be assessed annually under the Income Tax Act. Accounting Standards 7 (AS7) issued by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India also recognize the position that in the case of construction contracts, the assessee can follow either the project completion method or the percentage completion method. In view of the judgments of the Supreme Court (Supra), the finding of the CI .....

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..... tion of works in progress will not prejudice either side. Admittedly, the particular work control were not completed and it comes under the category of work in progress. There is also no dispute that the ultimate liability of the Assessee as regards tax will be dependant upon in total (fixed) amount received by the Assessee against the particular work control. 12. We, therefore, hold that the Income tax authority has no option/ jurisdiction to muddle in the matter either by directing the assessee to maintain the account in a particular manner or adopt a different method for valuing the work in progress. We reiterate the decision in Doom Dooma India Ltd. (supra) and hold that an assessee has as the option/liberty to adopt any recognized method of account for his business and the income shall be computed in accordance with such regularly maintained accounting system. CIT vs. V.S. Dempo CO. Pvt. Ltd. [1996] 131 CTR 203 (Mum): 4. We have carefully considered the rival submissions. We find that the controversy in this case is basically a finding of fact which has to be decided by the authorities concerned on the facts and circumstances of each case. In the instant case, .....

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..... uld not be confused as one, although there will be no overlapping in the materials used for applying both processes. The initial step of rejecting the accounts will be justified when the account books are found for valid reasons unreliable, incorrect or incomplete. The assessee at this stage has to be given reasonable opportunity for offering explanations regarding the defects in the accounts and on his failure to satisfactorily explain the defects, the department will be justified in rejecting the accounts. The subsequent step of assessment to the best of judgment, as has been uniformly recognised by the courts, involves some guess-work and necessarily has to be done on the materials available in each case. The Privy Council had occasion to consider the exact import of the expression to the best of his judgment occurring in Section 23(4) of the Indian Income Tax Act, 1922 (see Commissioner of Income Tax v. Laxminarain Badridas [1937] 5 I.T.R. 170, 180 (P.C.)). The Privy Council made the following observation in that judgment: He (the assessing authority) must not act dishonestly or vindictively or capriciously because he must exercise judgment in the matter. He must make w .....

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..... cost and if the market value is lower, it was to be shown separately in brackets. Now, the question would be when such a Bank is submitting its statutory return of income, whether it can disclose in its return its real profit and/or loss on the basis of market value of securities and shares? It has been pointed out that the balance sheet or the audited accounts maintained on the basis of the investment in shares at cost would not disclose the real profit or loss of the Bankin view of the fact that depreciation in the value of the shares or fall in the market value of the shares and securities is not provided in the audited accounts. Learned Counsel for the appellant submitted that even though in the balance sheet maintained by the assessee, market price of the shares and securities is not mentioned, yet for determining the real income of the assessee Bank, the said price is required to be taken into account. And, for that purpose since years, the assessee Bank was submitting income tax returns after taking into account the market price of such shares and securities which has been accepted by the Department without any objection. He also submitted that not making of proper entries .....

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..... ess than the cost, then the effect is to state the profit on the goods which actually have been sold at the incorrect figure.... From this rigid doctrine one exception is very generally recognised on prudential grounds and is now fully sanctioned by custom, viz., the adoption of market value at the date of making up accounts, if that value is less than cost. It is of course an anticipation of the loss that may be made on those goods in the following year, and may even have the effect, if prices rise again, of attributing to the following year's results a greater amount of profit than the difference between the actual sale price and the actual cost price of the goods in question. (extracted in paragraph 281 of the Report of the Committee on the Taxation of Trading Profits presented to British Parliament in April, 1951). While anticipated loss is thus taken into account, anticipated profit in the shape of appreciated value of the closing stock is not brought into account, as no prudent trader would care to show increased profit before its actual realisation. This is the theory underlying the rule that the closing stock is to be valued at cost or market price whichever is th .....

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..... icer must necessarily decide is whether or not the method of accounting followed by the assessee discloses true income and observed thus: It is a well recognised principle of commercial accounting to enter in the profit and loss account the value of the stock- in-trade at the beginning and at the end of the accounting year at cost or market price, whichever is the lower. 22. The Court further considered Section 145 of the Act and observed that what is to be determined by the officer in exercise of the power is a question of fact, that is, whether or not income chargeable under the Act can be properly deduced from the books of accounts and the question must be decided with reference to the relevant material and in accordance with the correct principles. The Court also observed: Where the market value has fallen before the date of valuation and, on that date, the market value of the article is less than its actual cost, the assessee is entitled to value the articles at market value and thus anticipate the loss which he will probably incur at the time of the sale of the goods. Valuation of the stock-in-trade at cost or market value, whichever is the lower, is a matter e .....

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..... maintained as per the statutory form. But as the assessee was maintaining its accounts on mercantile system, he was entitled to show his real income by taking into account market value of such investments in arriving at real taxable income. On that basis, therefore, Assessing Officer has taxed the assessee. 24. From the decisions discussed above, it can be held: (1) That for valuing the closing stock, it is open to the assessee to value it at the cost or market value, whichever is lower; (2) In the balance sheet, if the securities and shares are valued at cost but from that no firm conclusion can be drawn. A taxpayer is free to employ for the purpose of his trade, his own method of keeping accounts, and for that purpose, to value stock-in-trade either at cost or market price; (3) A method of accounting adopted by the tax payer consistently and regularly cannot be discarded by the departmental authorities on the view that he should have adopted a different method of keeping accounts or of valuation; (4) The concept of real income is certainly applicable in judging whether there has income or not, but in every case, it must be applied with care and within the .....

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..... were developed during the years prior to Assessment Year 2004-05. The search was conducted on 18.06.2003 wherein the loose papers or the documents were seized. The material seized in form of loosepaper was qua one flat No. A/204 only in respect of which taking of 'on-money' could be alleged. It was on the basis of such loose papers, the addition on On-money account was sought to be made. That material could not have been used for the subsequent years for making addition on the same count. The addition in the Assessment Year 2004-05 was not sustained by the Tribunal in the appeal before it on the ground that the Assessing Officer ought to have confined himself in respect of sale transaction of one particular flat and he could not have on that basis calculated the addition for all flats. Accordingly, in respect of previous Assessment Year 2004-05, it was held by the Tribunal that the addition for On-money, made in the said year was not proper inasmuch as such addition could have been made only in respect of the flat in respect of which the evidence of On-money was found at the time of search. The said decision dated 31.03.2011 of ITAT, Ahmedabad was relied on, on behalf of th .....

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