2011 (7) TMI 959 - HC - Income Tax

Question of law - Additions of Rs. 24.50 lacs made by the AO in the course of assessment proceedings - CIT(A) and Tribunal accepted the factual explanation coupled with the evidence tendered by assessee in relation to the impugned additions made by AO and held that since the same has been properly explained and hence, it cannot be included while computing the total income of the assessee - Held that this Court in its appellate jurisdiction under s. 260A ibid, would not again de novo hold yet another factual inquiry with a view to find out as to whether explanation offered by assessee and which found acceptance to the Tribunal is good or bad, or whether it was rightly accepted, or not - it does not involve any substantial question of law. - Decided in favor of the assessee

Summary

Issues:
- Appeal filed by the CIT under s. 260A of the IT Act against an order of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal.
- Consideration of whether the appeal involves any substantial question of law.
- Deletion of additions made by the AO during assessment proceedings.
- Tribunal's decision to uphold the deletion of additions based on factual explanations and evidence provided by the assessee.
- Disagreement with the submissions made by the appellant's counsel regarding the additions.
- Detailed analysis of the documents and explanations provided by the assessee in relation to the additions.
- Tribunal's decision on the issue and reasoning behind the deletion of the additions.
- Determination that the issue involves a question of fact and not a question of law.
- Acceptance of the explanation by the CIT(A) and Tribunal leading to the deletion of the additions.
- Conclusion that the appeal does not involve any substantial question of law.

Analysis:
The judgment pertains to an appeal filed by the CIT under s. 260A of the IT Act against an order of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, where the Tribunal had allowed the assessee's appeal and partly allowed the appeal of the Revenue, resulting in the reversal of the CIT(A)'s order. The central issue was whether the appeal involved any substantial question of law as required under s. 260A. The specific issue under consideration was the additions of Rs. 24.50 lacs made by the AO during assessment proceedings, which were subsequently deleted by both the CIT(A) and the Tribunal based on the factual explanations and evidence provided by the assessee.

The appellant's counsel contended that the AO was justified in adding the impugned amount, but the Court disagreed with these submissions, stating that the explanation provided by the assessee was accepted by the Tribunal after a detailed examination of the issue. The Tribunal's decision was based on a thorough analysis of the seized documents, which did not provide concrete evidence to support the AO's additions. The Court emphasized that once the explanation is accepted by two appellate Courts on facts, such a finding is binding, and the High Court cannot re-examine the factual issues or draw new inferences.

The Court further clarified that the matter at hand was a question of fact and not a question of law, and the Tribunal had examined the issue in detail before reaching a decision. The Court concluded that since the CIT(A) and Tribunal had accepted the assessee's explanation and deleted the additions, the appeal did not raise any substantial legal issues. Therefore, the Court dismissed the appeal, holding that it did not involve any substantial question of law. The judgment highlighted the importance of factual findings and the limited scope for appellate review in cases where explanations provided by the assessee are accepted by the lower authorities.