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TMI Blog2024 (1) TMI 273X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d to be noticed. 3. The petitioner filed its Return of Income (ROI) for the aforementioned AY on 27.09.2011. Via the said ROI, the petitioner declared its income as Rs. 6,79,73,130/-. 4. The petitioner was thereafter subjected to a scrutiny-assessment. Accordingly, notices along with questionnaires were served on the petitioner to which replies were submitted. Amongst other aspects qua which responses were sought by the Assessing Officer (AO) was the issue which arises in the present writ petition i.e., the receipt of the unsecured loan amounting to Rs. 2,00,00,000/- by the petitioner from an entity named Transnational Growth Fund Limited [hereinafter referred to as "TGFL"]. 5. The record shows that the petitioner furnished the necessary information along with the responses lodged by it. The aforementioned aspect emerges upon examination of the questionnaire issued to the petitioner along with notice dated 27.07.2013. This notice was issued to the petitioner under Section 143(2) of the Act. The query concerning unsecured loans, to which we have made reference above, is extracted hereafter: "Please furnish complete statement of unsecured loans along with confirmations and suppo ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to in the communication there was also a reference to an entity named Sahu Exports Pvt. Ltd. 11. It is required to be emphasised that the petitioner is a partnership firm which goes by the name M/s Sahu Exports. The undisclosed income attributed to Sahu Exports Pvt. Ltd. was Rs. 2,00,00,000/-. 12. Interestingly, on 09.12.2013 the AO having jurisdiction over Sahu Exports Pvt. Ltd. informed that the purported accommodation entry said to have been given by Surendra Kumar Jain group via TGFL concerned the petitioner/assessee i.e., M/s Sahu Exports and not Sahu Exports Pvt. Ltd. 13. It is against this backdrop that assessment order dated 26.02.2014 was framed by the AO for the AY in issue i.e., 2011-12. As regards unsecured loans, the AO made an addition of Rs. 14,14,288/-. The discussion as regards the same is contained in paragraph 6.5 of the assessment order. 14. Concededly, the respondents/revenue with regard to the same were served with two communications albeit after the assessment order had been framed. These communications are dated 16.05.2017 and 16.03.2018. Although no action was taken on the communication dated 16.05.2017, the events which followed thereafter showed that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent have been produced. The rationale for re-assessment - from the notice received under Section 147/148 by the assessee - is the alleged unexplained credit of Rs. 2 crores from Transactional Growth Fund Ltd. Prima facie, the materials on record in the form of copies of the bank statements etc. which were furnished during the course of assessment reveal that these were gone into. Clearly, the materials are not tangible and prima facie cannot be a valid ground for reopening the concluded assessment. In the circumstances, the respondent/Revenue is restrained from passing final orders in the re-assessment proceedings during the pendency of this petition. List on 11.03.2019. Order dasti under signatures of the Court Master." [Emphasis is ours] 21. As indicated above, thereafter counter-affidavit and rejoinder were filed and arguments in the matter were heard, once pleadings were completed. Submissions of Counsel: 22. Submissions on behalf of the petitioner were advanced by Mr Somil Agarwal, whereas Mr Prashant Meharchandani put forth arguments on behalf of the respondents/revenue. 23. Broadly, the submissions made by Mr Agarwal veered around the following aspects: (i) T ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... by the respondents/revenue concerning the same issue, no action was taken by the AO to trigger reassessment proceedings. It was only when communication dated 16.03.2018 was received by the respondents/revenue that the impugned notice dated 29.03.2018 under Section 148 of the Act was issued. (iii) Thirdly, when during the assessment proceedings queries were raised, inter alia, with regard to the subject unsecured loan which the petitioner claimed it had received from TGFL, and qua which responses were submitted along with relevant material, the AO after examining the material available to it, disallowed interest amounting to Rs. 14,14,288/-. 26. We may add one more aspect that along with communications dated 12.03.2013, 09.12.2013, 16.05.2017, 23.05.2017 and 16.03.2018, a photocopy of the single sheet handwritten document has been filed, which adverts, amongst other aspects, to an entry which is suggestive of fact that "Sahu Exports" received Rs. 2,00,00,000/- from TGFL via the RTGS route. This entry also seems to indicate that the funds were remitted to Axis Bank, although the word bank does not appear in the sheet submitted to us. There is no reference to this particular shee ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... xpress an opinion. 33. In this case, if nothing else, the respondents/revenue are to blame. If the actionable material was available, why was that not taken into account for nearly four years? 34. Furthermore, as indicated above, the issue was examined and thereafter closed by the AO after disallowing interest amounting to Rs. 14,14,288/-. 35. A perusal of the reasons to believe framed by the AO is suggestive of the fact that he had not applied his own mind to the material, if any, placed before him. He appears to have simply gone by the information contained in the letter dated 16.03.2018. 36. As a matter of fact, the AO for some strange reason did not refer to the letter dated 12.03.2013 which was enclosed with the said communication. 37. Curiously, the reasons to believe did not refer to the most crucial documents i.e., the letters dated 12.03.2013 and 09.12.2013 which allege that the accommodation entry was received by the petitioner. 38. We are of the view that the reassessment proceedings were triggered without the AO applying his own mind and articulating his reasons as to why he believed that the material available with him was indicative of the fact that the income w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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