During search, documents relating to cash and cheque loans arranged by the assessee, a financial broker, were seized. While the Revenue accepted brokerage earned on cheque transactions, it treated the principal amount of cash loans and interest thereon as unexplained money under section 69A. The Tribunal held that the assessee had already disclosed brokerage income from cash transactions in the return filed under section 153C and the Revenue could not adopt a contrary stand by treating the same transactions as the assessee’s undisclosed money. In the absence of any evidence showing that the cash advanced belonged to the assessee, the deletion of the addition by the Commissioner (Appeals) was upheld. The Tribunal reiterated that a seized document must be read in its entirety and neither the assessee nor the Revenue can rely only on isolated portions favourable to its case. Where the explanation regarding a transaction is available from the seized material or the statement recorded under section 132(4), the same must be considered before drawing adverse inferences.(AY. 2016-17 to 2019-20).
Dy. CIT v. Biharilal Shadhuram Chhabriya (2025) 124 ITR 149 (Nagpur)(Trib.)
S. 69A: Unexplained money-Search assessment-Financial broker-Cash loans belonging to clients-Brokerage income already disclosed-Addition as unexplained money deleted-Seized document-Entire document to be read as a whole-Revenue cannot rely selectively on favourable entries.[S.69A, 132, 132(4), 153C]
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