Shri Swaran Singh, Ludhiana V. ITO, W-6(3), Ludhiana

ITA 1169/CHANDI/2019

• Counselvise Citation: [2021] 108 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 7298 (ITAT-CHANDIGARH)
• Duration Of Justice: 1 year(s) 7 month(s) 7 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 05-04-2021
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Allowed
• Bench Allotted: B
• Assessment Year: 2011-2012
• Appeal Filed On: 29-08-2019
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: ASHOK KHANNA CIT
• Keywords: Opportunity of being heard; Principle of natural justice; Set aside; Audi alteram partem
• Section: 148

Judgement Text

, , IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL, CHANDIGARH BE NCH B, CHANDIGARH (VIRTUAL COURT) .., ! '# .. , $ %& BEFORE: SHRI. N.K.SAINI, VP & SHRI , R.L. NEGI, JM ITA NO. 1169/CHD/2019 ASSESSMENT YEAR : 2011-12 SHRI SWARAN SINGH S/O SHRI RATTAN SINGH H.NO. 483-L, MODEL TOWN, LUDHIANA THE ITO WARD-6(3), LUDHIANA PAN NO: AJOPS4182N APPELLANT RESPONDENT !' ASSESSEE BY : SHRI ASHWANI KUMAR, CA #!' REVENUE BY : SHRI ASHOK KHANNA, ADDL. CIT $ %! & DATE OF HEARING : 05/04/2021 '()*! & DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT : 05/04/2021 %'/ ORDER PER N.K. SAINI, VICE PRESIDENT THIS IS AN APPEAL BY THE ASSESSEE AGAINST THE ORDER DT. 12/07/2019 OF LD. CIT(A)-3, LUDHIANA. 2. FOLLOWING GROUNDS HAVE BEEN RAISED IN THIS APPEA L : 1. THAT ORDER PASSED U/S 250(6) OF THE INCOME TAX A CT, 1961 BY THE LEARNED COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX (APPEALS)-3, LUDHIANA IS AGAINST LAW AND FACTS ON THE FILE IN AS MUCH AS SHE WAS NOT JUSTIFIED TO DEC IDE THE APPEAL EX-PARTE. 2. THAT THE LD. CIT(A) WAS NOT JUSTIFIED IN NOT ADJ UDICATING THE VALIDITY OF INITIATION OF PROCEEDINGS U/S 147. 3. THAT THE LD. CIT(A) WAS FURTHER NOT JUSTIFIED TO UPHOLD THE ARBITRARY ADDITION OF RS. 75,00,000/- MADE BY THE LD. ASSESSING OFFICER . 3. THE MAIN GRIEVANCE OF THE ASSESSEE VIDE GROUND N O. 1 RELATES TO THE EXPARTE ORDER PASSED BY THE LD. CIT(A). 2 4. FACTS OF THE CASE IN BRIEF ARE THAT THE A.O. ON THE BASIS THAT THE ASSESSEE PURCHASED A PROPERTY OF RS. 75,00,000/- DURING THE FINANCIAL YEAR RELEVANT TO THE ASSESSMENT YEAR UNDER CONSIDERATION ISSUED NOTICE U NDER SECTION 148 OF THE INCOME TAX ACT, 1961 (HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS A CT) ON 30/03/2018 BY RECORDING THE REASONS TO BELIEVE THAT THE PURCHASE OF THE AFORESAID PROPERTY BY THE ASSESSEE HAD ESCAPED ASSESSMENT. SINCE NO REPL Y WAS RECEIVED FROM THE ASSESSEE THE A.O. FRAMED THE ASSESSMENT EXPARTE AND ASSESSED THE INCOME OF THE ASSESSEE AT RS. 75,00,000/-. 5. BEING AGGRIEVED THE ASSESSEE CARRIED THE MATTER TO THE LD. CIT(A) WHO DECIDE THE APPEAL EXPARTE BY OBSERVING IN PARA 5 OF THE IMPUGNED ORDER AS UNDER: 5. DURING THE COURSE OF APPELLATE PROCEEDINGS VAR IOUS DATES OF HEARING HAVE BEEN FIXED DETAILS OF WHICH ARE AS UNDER: SR. NO. DATE ON WHICH NOTICE WAS ISSUED MODE OF SERVICE DATE OF HEARING REMARK 1 I.T.N.S 37 AND 51 ON 25/02/2019 THROUGH NOTICE SERVER 15/03/2019 NONE ATTENDED 2. 25/03/2019 THROUGH NOTICE SERVER 24/04/2019 ON REQ. CASE ADJ. TO 16/05/2019 3. 16/05/2019 ON REQ. CASE ADJ. TO 06/06/2019 4. 06/06/2019 NONE ATTENDED 5. 25/06/2019 THROUGH NOTICE SERVER 10/07/2019 ON REQ. CASE ADJ. TO 12/07/2019 12/07/2019 NONE ATTENDED FROM THE ABOVE SEQUENCE OF EVENT, IT CAN BE SEEN TH AT NEITHER THE APPELLANT NOR HIS COUNSEL ATTENDED THE HEARING ON VARIOUS OCCASIO N ALTHOUGH HE HAS BEEN ISSUED NOTICES FOR HEARING ON VARIOUS DATES, WHICH HAVE BEEN DULY SERVED ALSO. IT HAS BEEN NOTICED THAT THE APPELLANT HAS NOT ATTENDE D THE HEARING ON THE DATE FIXED FOR HEARING WHEREAS NOTICE HAVE BEEN PROPERLY SERVED. AS THE APPELLANT HAS NOT AVAILED ANY OF THE OPPORTUNITIES ALLOWED TO HIM TO REPRESENT THE CASE, I AM OF 3 THE OPINION THAT THE APPELLANT IS NOT INTERESTED IN PURSUING HIS APPEAL MATTER AND HAS TO SAY NOTHING IN THE MATTER IN ADDITION TO GRO UNDS OF APPEAL TAKEN BY HIM. SO, THE APPEAL FILED BY THE APPELLANT IS BEING DISP OSED OFF EX-PARTE ON THE BASIS OF THE MATERIAL AVAILABLE ON RECORDS WITHOUT ALLOWI NG ANY FURTHER OPPORTUNITY OF BEING HEARD TO THE APPELLANT. THE MAXIM VIGILANTIBUS NON-DERMIENTIBUS JURA SUBVENUNT' I.E. 'THE LAW ASSIST THOSE WHO ARE VIGIL ANT AND NOT THOSE WHO SLEEP OVER THEIR RIGHTS' IS APPLICABLE IN THIS CASE. 6. THE LD. CIT(A) SUSTAINED THE ADDITION MADE BY TH E A.O. BY PASSING THE EXPARTE ORDER. 7. NOW THE ASSESSEE IS IN APPEAL. 8. LD. COUNSEL FOR THE ASSESSEE SUBMITTED THAT NO O PPORTUNITY OF BEING HEARD WAS PROVIDED BY THE LD. CIT(A) AND THE DATE OF HEAR ING ON 12/07/2019 WAS NOT CONVEYED TO THE ASSESSEE, THEREFORE THE ADDITION SU STAINED BY THE LD. CIT(A) WAS NOT JUSTIFIED. 9. IN HIS RIVAL SUBMISSIONS THE LD.SR. DR SUPPORTED THE ORDERS OF THE AUTHORITIES BELOW AND FURTHER SUBMITTED THAT CONSIDERING THE NO N COOPERATIVE ATTITUDE OF THE ASSESSEE THERE WAS NO ALTERATIVE EXCEPT TO PASS THE ASSESSMENT ORDER EXPARTE AND THAT THE LD. CIT(A) WAS ALSO JUSTIFIED IN SUSTAINING THE ADDITION, SINCE THE ASSESSEE DID NOT EXPLAIN THE SOURCE OF INVESTME NT IN THE PROPERTY. 10. WE HAVE CONSIDERED THE SUBMISSIONS OF BOTH THE PARTIES AND PERUSED THE MATERIAL AVAILABLE ON THE RECORD. IN THE PRESENT CA SE, IT IS AN ADMITTED FACT THAT THE A.O. PASSED THE ASSESSMENT ORDER EXPARTE AND TH E LD. CIT(A) ALSO PASSED THE IMPUGNED ORDER EXPARTE, HE SIMPLY STATED THAT W HENEVER THE CASE WAS FIXED, NON-ATTENDED, HE ALSO MENTIONED THAT THE NOT ICE DATED 25/06/2019 FOR HEARING ON 10/07/2019 WAS SERVED THROUGH NOTICE SER VER AND THE CASE WAS ADJOURNED TO 12/07/2019, HOWEVER, IT IS NOT BROUGH T ON RECORD AS TO WHETHER THE SAID DATE FOR HEARING ON 12/07/2019 WAS COMMUNICAT ED TO THE ASSESSEE. IT IS 4 WELL SETTLED THAT NOBODY SHOULD BE CONDEMNED, UNHEA RD AS PER THE MAXIM, AUDI ALTERAM PARTEM . 11. WE THEREFORE KEEPING IN VIEW THE PRINCIPLES OF NATURAL JUSTICE, DEEM IT APPROPRIATE TO SET ASIDE THIS CASE BACK TO THE FILE OF LD. CIT(A) TO BE ADJUDICATED AFRESH IN ACCORDANCE WITH LAW AFTER PRO VIDING DUE AND REASONABLE OPPORTUNITY OF BEING HEARD TO THE ASSESSEE. 12. IN THE RESULT, APPEAL OF THE ASSESSEE IS ALLOWE D FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES. (ORDER PRONOUNCED IN THE OPEN COURT ON 05/04/2021) SD/- SD/- .. .., (R.L. NEGI ) ( N.K. SAIN I) $ %&/ JUDICIAL MEMBER ! / VICE PRESIDENT AG DATE: 05/04/2021 (+! ,-.- COPY OF THE ORDER FORWARDED TO : 1. THE APPELLANT 2. THE RESPONDENT 3. $ / CIT 4. $ / 01 THE CIT(A) 5. -2 45&456789 DR, ITAT, CHANDIGARH 6. 8:% GUARD FILE