2023 (4) TMI 43 - HC - Income Tax

Income from undisclosed sources - Tribunal held that an amount of Rs.1 lac was rightly added as income of the assessee from undisclosed source as this was reflected by the assessee as NRE gift - HELD THAT - After the order by the appellate authority (Annexure A-3) and before the Tribunal, the assessee had got relief of Rs.6,15,291/- by deleting the said amount from his income. On a meager amount of Rs. 1 lac, the petitioner filed an appeal before this Court. There is no ground to entertain this appeal as income of Rs. 12 lacs as declared by the petitioner has been accepted and deletion of Rs.6,15,291/- has already been made by the Tribunal The argument of the learned counsel for the appellant that addition of Rs. 1 lac towards income as a gift given by NRE, is liable to be rejected as the petitioner failed to explain its source and genuineness of the gift. No substantial question of law.

Summary

Issues Involved:
The judgment deals with the assessment of income derived from real estate business, including unexplained cash, jewellery, incriminating documents, and undisclosed sources. It also addresses the deletion of certain additions made by the Assessing Officer and the subsequent appeal before the Tribunal.

Assessment of Income:
The assessee, a proprietor of a real estate business, faced a search and seizure operation resulting in the discovery of assets, incriminating documents, and cash jewellery. The Assessing Officer found discrepancies in the declared income, adding unexplained amounts to the total. Various sums, including cash and commission income, were considered undisclosed and added to the assessee's income. Additionally, investments and earnings from properties were also included in the assessment, leading to a total added income of Rs. 8,46,200.

Deletion of Additions:
Considering that Rs. 10 lakhs had already been surrendered by the assessee during the search, the Assessing Officer deleted Rs. 8,46,200 from this amount. Further adjustments were made, resulting in a net additional income of Rs. 6,15,291. The Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) partly allowed the appeal, reducing the total addition to Rs. 16,15,291, and the Tribunal upheld an amount of Rs. 1 lakh as income from an undisclosed source.

Judicial Review:
The appellant challenged the addition of Rs. 1 lakh as income from an NRE gift, arguing that the source and genuineness were not adequately explained. The Court dismissed the appeal, citing the acceptance of the declared income of Rs. 12 lakhs and the deletion of Rs. 6,15,291 by the Tribunal. The appellant's reliance on irrelevant judgments was deemed inapplicable to the case, leading to the dismissal of the appeal due to the lack of substantial legal questions.