ITAT remands case to Assessing Officer: Allows Assessee to furnish details for Unexplained Investment [Read Order]

The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal ( ITAT ), Ahmedabad bench, has remanded a case back to the Assessing Officer ( AO ) for further examination, allowing the assessee to furnish the necessary details regarding unexplained investments. This decision came after the Tribunal found merit in the assessee’s request for another opportunity to submit supporting documents, which were not presented earlier.

Maheshbhai Nagjibhai Desai, the appellant, a resident of Ahmedabad, had been subjected to an assessment by the Income Tax Officer ( ITO ) for the Assessment Year 2012-13.

The ITO had passed an order on 24th December 2019, which resulted in a significant increase in the total taxable income from Rs. 1,50,820 to Rs. 42,40,590. The main reason for this substantial increase was the unexplained investment of Rs. 28,50,000 in the acquisition of property, which the AO had treated as unexplained under Section 69 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. This was primarily due to the failure of the appellant to provide supporting documents during the assessment process.

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Subsequently, the appellant challenged this addition in the first appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) [CIT(A)]. However, the CIT(A) upheld the order of the Assessing Officer, stating that the appellant had not furnished the necessary details before the AO. This left the appellant dissatisfied with the outcome.

In the appeal before the ITAT, the appellant, represented by Advocate Shri Tej Shah, sought a chance to submit the required documents, arguing that no prejudice would be caused to the Revenue if given a fair opportunity to present the case. The Departmental Representative Neeju Gupta, accepted the proposal of remanding the case.

After considering the arguments, Single Member Bench of Dr. BRR Kumar ( Vice-President ) agreed with the appellant and remanded the case to the Assessing Officer, directing that the matter be reconsidered with the new evidence to be provided. This remand gives the appellant a fresh chance to prove the legitimacy of the investment.

The Tribunal’s order has been hailed as a fair decision, ensuring that the appellant gets another opportunity to substantiate his case. The case will now be heard afresh by the Assessing Officer, who is expected to pass a de novo order after evaluating the additional documents.

The appeal has been allowed for statistical purposes, and the matter has been remanded to the Assessing Officer for further consideration.

To Read the full text of the Order CLICK HERE

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