Rs. 80 lakh Cash Payment for Flat Treated as Unexplained Investment: ITAT Upholds CIT(A) Deletion as No Payment or Allotment Exists [Read Order]
The ITAT noted that the AO produced no evidence of any payment or allotment, and the addition relied solely on a third-party Excel sheet without registration or agreement.
Cash Payment - Unexplained Investment - ITAT - Upholds - taxscan
Cash Payment - Unexplained Investment - ITAT - Upholds - taxscan
The Mumbai Bench of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal ( ITAT ) upheld the Commissioner of Income Tax( Appeals) [CIT(A)] deletion of Rs. 80 lakh treated as unexplained income for a flat, as no payment was made and no allotment existed.
The Revenue-appellant appealed against the CIT(A) order dated 05/03/2025 for the AY 2018-19. In this case, Sudipta Ajoykumar Mukherjee,respondent-assessee, was involved in a search and seizure conducted under section 132 of the Act on 07/05/2018 by the DDIT, in connection with Mohini Group and its entities.
During the search, an excel-sheet of Ashirwad Co-operative Housing Society Ltd., dated 22/03/2018, showed that the assessee had allegedly paid Rs. 80,00,000/- in cash for a flat allotment.
The Assessing Officer (AO) issued a show cause notice treating the amount as unexplained investment under section 69. The assessee clarified that she received an allotment letter for a 2BHK flat costing Rs. 51.20 lakhs, was asked to deposit 25% of the initial amount, intended to take a housing loan, but resigned from the Society before making any payment.
The AO still added Rs. 80,00,000/- to her income. On appeal, the CIT(A) accepted her explanation, noting that no payment was made and no flat was allotted, and deleted the addition.
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The addition was based solely on an excel-sheet recovered from a third party, a building contractor associated with the Society. There was no registration or agreement evidencing allotment, and the addition relied on presumptions and conjectures. Considering the facts in totality, the tribunal found no error in the CIT(A)’s decision and upheld the deletion of the addition.
Accordingly the appeal of the revenue was dismissed.
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