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TMI Blog2008 (9) TMI 290X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t was carried out at the business premises of the assessee and the assessment under section 158BC was completed. The assessee preferred an appeal and also raised additional grounds against the validity of search. The Tribunal held that the search and seizure was illegal as no material was produced before the Tribunal to show that the requirements of section 132(1) of the Act were complied with. 3. Though initially, a number of questions of law were sought to be raised but in view of the order dated July 28, 2008, of this court, the matter is required to be considered with respect to questions (a) and (b), which are as under: "(a) Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal was right in law ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... aken by the Delhi Bench of the Tribunal in Virinder Bhatia v. Deputy CIT [2001] 79 ITD 340 and the Madhya Pradesh High Court in Gaya Prasad Pathak v. Asst. CIT [2007] 290 ITR 128. For the same reason, we respectfully disagree with the view taken by the Rajasthan High Court in CIT v. Smt. Chitra Devi Soni [2008] 1 DTR 98; [2009] 313 ITR 174. The judgment of this court in CIT v. Raj Kumar Gupta (I. T. A. No. 50 of 2002- passed on August 21, 2003) does not deal with the issue of scope of the assessing authority to go into the question of validity of search. 10. In the judgment of the Delhi High Court in M. B. Lal V. CIT [2005] 279 ITR 298, it was observed (page 303): "It was, in the light of the above, no longer open to the petitioner to rea ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stituted under article 323 of the Constitution can delve into, we are disposed to think, is an unacceptable proposition of law especially in the teeth of the provision contained under section 253 of the Act." 12. We are of the view that the Tribunal when hearing an appeal against the order of assessment could not go into the question of validity or otherwise of any administrative decision for conducting the search and seizure. The same may be the subject-matter of challenge in independent proceedings where the question of validity or otherwise of administrative order could be gone into. The appellate authority was concerned with the correctness or otherwise of the assessment. 13. For the above reasons, we answer question (a) in favour of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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