ADVANCE IMPEX PRIVATE LIMITED,NEW DELHI V. DCIT, CIRCLE1(2), NEW DELHI

ITA 8486/DEL/2019

AI Insights

The case involves fourteen appeals by Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. against various orders related to the assessment years 2008-09 to 2013-14. The primary issue was the imposition of penalties under sections 271D and 271E, and additions under section 69C, based on allegations that the company had availed unsecured cash loans and made cash interest payments. The Revenue's case relied on statements from Mr. Sant Lal Aggarwal, who allegedly admitted to providing cash loans to the assessee. However, the Tribunal found that the department failed to produce concrete evidence supporting these claims. Consequently, the Tribunal reversed the lower authorities' decisions and allowed the appeals.

• Counselvise Citation: [2024] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 38309 (ITAT-DELHI)
• Duration Of Justice: 5 year(s) 28 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 27-11-2024
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Allowed
• Bench Allotted: A
• Next Hearing Date: 20-11-2024
• Assessment Year: 2009-2010
• Appeal Filed On: 30-10-2019
• Other Referred Cases: M/s Shagun Jewellers Pvt. Ltd. Vs. ACIT
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: POOJAN RANA
• Assessee Lawyers: SHYAM JAIN; NITIN GULATI
• Keywords: Unexplained expenditure
• Section: 143(3); 69C; 271D; 271E

Judgement Text

"IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL DELHI BENCH ‘A’, NEW DELHI Before Sh. Satbeer Singh Godara, Judicial Member & Sh. M. Balaganesh, Accountant Member ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018 (Asstt. Years: 2008-09 to 2013-14) Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd., 39/77, West Punjabi Bagh, New Delhi-110026 Vs Addl. CIT, Range-1, New Delhi-110002 (APPELLANT) (RESPONDENT) PAN No. AAECA7265J ITA Nos. 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 (Asstt. Years: 2009-10, 2010-11 & 2011-12) Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd., 39/77, West Punjabi Bagh, New Delhi-110026 Vs DCIT, Circle-1(2), New Delhi-110002 (APPELLANT) (RESPONDENT) PAN No. AAECA7265J Assessee by : Sh. Shyam Jain, Adv. & Sh. Nitin Gulati, Adv. Revenue by : Sh. Poojan Rana, Sr. DR Date of Hearing: 20.11.2024 Date of Pronouncement: 27.11.2024 ORDER Per Satbeer Singh Godara, Judicial Member: The instant batch of fourteen appeals pertains to a single assessee herein M/s Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. All other relevant details thereof stand/hereby tabulated as under: Sl. No. ITA Nos. A.Y. Appellant Respondent Order passed against Proceedings u/s 1. 6523/Del/2018 2008-09 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 43/17-18 Dated 16.08.2018 271D 2. 6524/Del/2018 2009-10 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 44/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271D ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018 ITA Nos. 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. 2 3. 6525/Del/2018 2010-11 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 46/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271D 4. 6526/Del/2018 2011-12 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 49/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271D 5. 6527/Del/2018 2012-13 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 50/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271D 6. 6528/Del/2018 2013-14 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 53/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271D 7. 6529/Del/2018 2009-10 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 45/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271E 8. 6530/Del/2018 2010-11 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 47/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271E 9. 6531/Del/2018 2011-12 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 48/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271E 10 6532/Del/2018 2012-13 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 51/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271E 11 6533/Del/2018 2013-14 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. Addl. CIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 52/17-18 dated 16.08.2018 271E 12 8486/Del/2019 2009-10 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. DCIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 706/16-17 dated 30.08.2019 143(3) r.w.s 147 13 8487/Del/2019 2010-11 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. DCIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 214/16-17 dated 30.08.2019 147 r.w.s 144 14 9049/Del/2019 2011-12 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. DCIT CIT(A)-1, New Delhi Appeal No. 195/18-19 dated 16.10.2019 147 r.w.s. 143(3) 2. Heard both parties at length. Case files perused. 3. It emerges during the course of hearing that there arises a common inter connected issue in assessee’s all the instant fourteen appeals wherein the learned lower authorities have inter alia held it to have availed unsecured loans in cash from ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018 ITA Nos. 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. 3 one Mr. Sant Lal Aggarwal his group concerns and paid interest to the creditor entities in the very mode followed by levy of penalty u/s 271D and 271E of the Act, involving varying sums. 4. Both the parties are very much ad idem during the course of hearing that the assessee’s appeal ITA No. 8486/Del/2019 for A.Y. 2009-10 involving section 147 r.w.s. 143(3) proceedings could be very well taken as the “lead” case. 5. It next emerges from a perusal of the Assessing Officer’s corresponding assessment dated 27.12.2016 in this lead case that some cash was seized in Gujarat which resulted in the department’s investigation wing passing information to the assessee’s Assessing Officer that one Sh. Sant Lal Aggarwal had admitted to have advanced cash loans to the assessee; which in turn, also involved the latter’s cash interest repaid as well to the tune of Rs.1,81,47,335/-. 6. The assessee appears to have out rightly denied any such unsecured cash loans as well as interest payment thereupon before the Assessing Officer which stood rejected in the assessment going by his information coming from the department’s investigation wing. He thus proceeded to assess cash interest payment amounting to Rs.1,81,47,335/- as unexplained expenditure u/s 69C of the Act. He further initiated section 271D and 271E penalties against the assessee as well as on the ground that both his availing cash loan and repayment thereof by the very mode violated the corresponding provisions i.e. section 269SS and 269T of the Act. The CIT(A)’s lower appellate discussion has upheld the assessment findings on all the foregoing issues. ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018 ITA Nos. 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. 4 It is in this factual backdrop that the assessee has preferred the instant “lead” quantum appeal ITA No. 8487/Del/2019 for A.Y. 2010-11. 7. We have given our thoughtful consideration to rival stands wherein the assessee’s case is that there is not even iota of evidence suggesting either unsecured cash loans or repayment thereof which could attract both section 69C addition as well as section 271D and 271E penalties. 8. The Revenue’s on the other hand strongly contests the assessee’s arguments on the ground that Sh. Sant Lal Aggarwal had indeed deposed in his statement recorded that it had availed cash loans and also paid cash interest thereupon. 9. Faced with this situation, we note from the case file that the earlier learned co-ordinate bench had directed the department to produce the relevant material going against the assessee indicating it to have availed cash loans and paid cash interest. The department had sought eight weeks time on 16.11.2023 and no such material; much less tangible one, to this effect has seen light of the day. When we sought to know the Revenue’s response, Mr. Rana sought to refer to Sh. Sant Lal Aggarwal’s statement at pages 1 to 16 that he had duly admitted to have advanced cash loans to the assessee. We ourselves read out this statement comprising of Sh. Sant Lal Aggarwal reply 1 to 32 questions wherein he had rather denied any connection with the assessee at page 14 with reference to question no. 7. 10. It is at this stage that Mr. Jain refers to the tribunal’s earlier learned co-ordinate bench’s order dated 16.06.2020 in M/s Shagun Jewellers Pvt. Ltd. Vs. ACIT in ITA No. ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018 ITA Nos. 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 Advance Impex Pvt. Ltd. 5 9890/Del/2019 wherein the department stand seeking to made addition(s) as Mr. Aggarwal’s statement stood rejected. 11. The Revenue on the other hand, sought to distinguish the said decision that the facts in both these cases do not stand on identical footing. Be that it may, the fact remains that there is no material in the case file specifically quoted pinpointing any unsecured loans availed by the assessee which in turn could invite the alleged cash interest payment or violation of section 269SS or 269T in the foregoing terms. We thus have no option but to delete section 69C addition(s) in the foregoing “lead” case as well as those involving section 143(3) r.w.s. 147 proceedings and also reverse the section 271D and 271E penalties in the absence of any evidence produced by the department. The assessee succeeds in all its fourteen appeal therefore. No other ground has been pressed at the assessee behest. 12. To sum up, these assessee’s fourteen appeals ITA Nos. 6523 to 6533/Del/2018, 8486, 8487 & 9049/Del/2019 are allowed in above terms. A copy of this common order be placed in respective case files. Order Pronounced in the Open Court on 27/11/2024. Sd/- Sd/- (M. Balaganesh) (Satbeer Singh Godara) Accountant Member Judicial Member Dated: 27/11/2024 *Subodh Kumar, Sr. PS* Copy forwarded to: 1. Appellant 2. Respondent 3. CIT 4. CIT(Appeals) 5. DR: ITAT ASSISTANT REGISTRAR "