Sanjay Singhal (HUF) v Dy. CIT (2020) 81 ITR 377 ( Chd) (Trib)

S. 147 : Reassessment – Search and seizure — Information received from investigation wing —Not independently verified from record —Correct course of action would have been to proceed under section. 153C and not under section 147 – Reassessment was quashed [ S. 132, 148 ,153C ]

Allowing the appeal the Tribunal held that the AO r had acted on the basis of the information received from the Investigation Wing of the Department and had not independently verified from the record available to him in the form of the return filed by the assessee. So there was only suspicion of some income having escaped assessment which could not by itself be sufficient to sustain the action under S. 147 read with S. 148 of the Act . The reopening in the assessee’s case by the Assessing Officer was merely based on the borrowed satisfaction drawn from other cases which was not sufficient for the purposes of sustaining any addition made under S. 147 read with S.  148 . If any action was required to be done on the basis of certain documents found from other persons during the course of search the assessment could have been framed under  S.  153C but no such action was taken in the assessee’s case. Rather the action was taken indirectly under S.  147 read with S.  148  of the Act .  If any material was found relating to the assessee during the course of search on third parties the correct course of action would have been to proceed against the assessee under S.  153C and there was no justification for the Assessing Officer to initiate the proceedings under S.  147 read with S.  148 . The order of the AO was set aside and quashed.( AY.2011-12 to 2013-14)