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TMI Blog2018 (9) TMI 886X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ated 03.03.2016 relating to assessment years 1999-2000 to 2001-02 against respective orders passed under section 143(3) r.w.s. 153C of the Income Tax Act 1961 (in short the Act ). 2. This bunch of three appeals relating to same assessee on similar issues were heard together and are being disposed of by this consolidated order for the sake of convenience. 3. The assessee has raised several grounds of appeal but we are first adjudicating the jurisdictional issue raised by the assessee by way of ground of appeal No.4, which reads as under:- Assessment is Time Barred 4. failed to appreciate that six years prior to the assessment year in which documents were received by the jurisdictional Assessing Officer of the Appellant, which can be reassessed to tax, start from AY 2002-03 and hence reassessment made for AY 1999-00 is time barred; 4. Briefly, in the facts of the case, the assessee had originally filed return of income on 31.08.2009. Search and seizure operation under section 132 of the Act was carried out at the premises of Shri Shreeram H. Soni on 29.07.2003. During the course of search operation, documents relating to the assessee were found and seized. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ized or requisitioned, belongs to a person other than the person referred in section 153A of the Act i.e. the person searched, then books of account or documents or assets seized or requisitioned shall be handed over to the Assessing Officer having jurisdiction over such other person. The proviso thereunder reads as under:- 153C(1) .. Provided that in case of such other person, the reference to the date of initiation of the search under section 132 or making of requisition under section 132A in the second proviso to sub-section (1) of section 153A shall be construed as reference to the date of receiving the books of account or documents or assets seized or requisitioned by the Assessing Officer having jurisdiction over such other person 10. In view of proviso to section 153C of the Act, in the case of such other person , reference to the date of initiation of search under section 132 of the Act shall be construed as reference to the date of receiving books of account or documents or assets seized or requisitioned by the Assessing Officer having jurisdiction over such other person. Further, under section 153A of the Act, the Assessing Officer is empowered to asse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... only to the second proviso to Section 153 A(1) of the Act, which only indicates that any assessment relating to any AY falling within the period of six AYs which is pending as of the initiation of search shall abate. Therefore, the second proviso to Section 153 C is also concerned only with the aspect of abatement of pending assessments. According to the Revenue, this makes no difference to the computation of the block of six years preceding the AY relevant to the previous year /in which the search was conducted. In other words, according to the Revenue, the block period for both the searched person and the 'other person' would remain the same notwithstanding that there may be some delay in transmitting the documents recovered during the search which belong or pertain to the 'other person' to the AO of such other person. 7. The case of the Assessee, on the other hand, is that since in the case of the 'other person' the AO issues notice only subsequent to the notices issued under Section 153 A to the searched person, the starting point for computation of the block period would be the date on which, based on the seized documents, notice is issued to the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ..... 24. As discussed hereinbefore, in terms of proviso to Section 153C of the Act, a reference to the date of the search under the second proviso to Section 153A of the Act has to be construed as the date of handing over of assets/documents belonging to the Assessee (being the person other than the one searched) to the AO having jurisdiction to assess the said Assessee. Further proceedings, by virtue of Section 153C(1) of the Act, would have to be in accordance with Section 153A of the Act and the reference to the date of search would have to be construed as the reference to the date of recording of satisfaction. It would follow that the six assessment years for which assessments/reassessments could be made under Section 153C of the Act would also have to be construed with reference to the date of handing over of assets/documents to the AO of the Assessee. 9. The said decision in RRJ Securities (supra) has been followed by this Court subsequently in ARN Infrastructure India Ltd. v. Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax, Central Circule-28, New Delhi [2017] 394 ITR 569 (Del.). 13. The Hon ble High Court also considered the amendment to section 153C of the Act by Financ ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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