2019 (1) TMI 1398 - AT - Income Tax

Addition made u/s 41(1) - CIT-A deleted the addition accepting fresh evidence such as detailed ledger extracts of all the sundry creditors as well as the copies of the civil suits - whether violation of Rule 46A of the Income Tax Rule - Held that - AO treated the sundry creditors as income of the assessee and added to the total income returned. During the course of appellate proceedings, the assessee filed detailed schedules of outstanding sundry creditors as on 31.03.2014 in the books of accounts. The assessee also furnished detailed ledger extracts of all the sundry creditors as well as the copies of the civil suits filed by a large number of creditors for recovery of their dues from the assessee company. By considering the above details furnished by the assessee and without obtaining any remand report from the Assessing Officer, the ld. CIT(A) deleted the addition which is, in violation of Rule 46A. Accordingly, we set aside the order of the ld. CIT(A) and remit the entire issue to the file of Assessing Officer to examine and verify the evidences - Decided in favour of assessee for statistical purposes.

Summary

Issues: Appeal against deletion of addition made under section 41(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 based on fresh evidence.

Analysis:
1. Background: The appeal filed by the Revenue challenged the order of the ld. Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) relevant to the assessment year 2014-15, concerning the deletion of an addition made under section 41(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, amounting to &8377;3,53,37,996/-.

2. Assessee's Business and Discontinuation: The assessee company was engaged in the manufacture and distribution of industrial chemicals and agricultural products, but discontinued its business due to incurred losses. Creditors of the assessee had approached the Debt Recovery Tribunal for recovering their receivables.

3. Assessment and Addition: The assessment under section 143(3) of the Act resulted in an addition of &8377;3,53,37,996/- towards the amount claimed under sundry creditors due to incomplete details provided by the assessee.

4. Appeal before CIT(A): The assessee appealed before the ld. CIT(A), who, after considering submissions and detailed ledger extracts of sundry creditors, deleted the addition under section 41(1) of the Act.

5. Revenue's Appeal before Tribunal: The Revenue, aggrieved by the decision, contended that the fresh evidence considered by the ld. CIT(A) without giving an opportunity to the Assessing Officer violated Rule 46A. The Revenue requested the issue to be remitted back for verification.

6. Tribunal's Decision: Despite the absence of the assessee, the Tribunal reviewed the case. It noted the failure of the assessee to provide complete details of sundry creditors during assessment. The ld. CIT(A) deleted the addition based on detailed schedules and ledger extracts provided by the assessee without seeking a remand report from the Assessing Officer, contrary to Rule 46A. Therefore, the Tribunal set aside the CIT(A)'s order, remitting the issue to the Assessing Officer for fresh examination and decision after providing an opportunity to the assessee.

7. Conclusion: The Tribunal partly allowed the appeal filed by the Revenue for statistical purposes, emphasizing the need for adherence to procedural rules and proper verification of evidence in tax matters.

Judgment: The appeal filed by the Revenue was partly allowed, and the entire issue was remitted to the Assessing Officer for reconsideration in compliance with the law and principles of natural justice.