2012 (10) TMI 530 - AT - Income Tax

Search and seizure - additions u/s 68 - held that - assessee has filed confirmation letters and the creditors are genuine and have explained their sources. Further, all the amounts have been received through banking channels and two of them were paid back through cheques. If the Assessing Officer had any doubt with respect to the genuineness of the transactions, he should have enquired the creditors, which he failed to do. - no addition - in favor of assessee. Taxability of interest in the hands of partners - held that - . Even the capital account does not have any credit under the head interest . Interest paid to partners, which has been disallowed in the hands of the partnership firms cannot be assessed in the hands of the partners.

Issues Involved:
1. Addition of loan amounts under Section 68 of the Income Tax Act.
2. Addition of interest income from partnership firms.
3. Levy of interest under Sections 234A, 234B, and 234C.
4. Validity of proceedings initiated by issuing notice under Section 153C of the Act.

Detailed Analysis:

1. Addition of Loan Amounts Under Section 68 of the Income Tax Act:

ITA NO. 1075/Hyd/2011:
The assessee contested the addition of Rs. 24,27,365/- as income under Section 68. The assessee provided confirmation letters from five individuals, detailing the sources of the loans and the methods of transfer, which were through banking channels. The Tribunal found that the assessee had discharged his onus by providing sufficient evidence and that the Assessing Officer (AO) failed to further investigate the creditors. Therefore, the addition of Rs. 24,27,365/- was ordered to be deleted.

ITA No. 1076/Hyd/11:
The assessee contested the addition of Rs. 30,00,000/- from C. Venkata Raju, Rs. 60,000/- from G. Sashi Bhushan, and Rs. 1,00,000/- from K. Kalavathi. The Tribunal upheld the addition of Rs. 30,00,000/- due to insufficient proof of the creditor's capacity but deleted the additions of Rs. 60,000/- and Rs. 1,00,000/- after finding the creditors had sufficient savings to advance the loans.

2. Addition of Interest Income from Partnership Firms:

ITA NO. 1075/Hyd/2011:
The assessee contested the addition of Rs. 3,54,655/- and Rs. 6,06,332/- as interest income from partnership firms. The Tribunal noted that the partnership firms did not claim any interest payments in their returns. Hence, these additions were remitted back to the AO to determine the correct amount of interest received by the assessee.

3. Levy of Interest Under Sections 234A, 234B, and 234C:

ITA NO. 1075/Hyd/2011:
The Tribunal directed that the charging of interest under Sections 234A, 234B, and 234C is consequential in nature and should be adjusted accordingly by the AO.

ITA No. 1076/Hyd/11:
Similarly, the Tribunal directed the AO to adjust the charging of interest under Sections 234B and 234C consequentially.

4. Validity of Proceedings Initiated by Issuing Notice Under Section 153C of the Act:

ITA NO. 1075/Hyd/2011:
The assessee did not press the issue regarding the validity of the notice under Section 153C, and thus, this ground was dismissed as not pressed.

ITA No. 1076/Hyd/11:
The assessee also did not press the issue regarding the validity of the notice under Section 153C, and this ground was dismissed as not pressed.

Conclusion:
In ITA No. 1075/Hyd/11, the appeal was partly allowed for statistical purposes, with significant deletions and remittals regarding the additions. In ITA No. 1076/Hyd/11, the appeal was partly allowed, with some additions upheld and others deleted.

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