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Judgment
PER SATBEER SINGH GODARA, JM
These Revenue’s appeals ITA Nos. 5471, 5472 & 5473/Del/2025 and assessee’s as many cross objections C.O. Nos. 63, 61 & 62/Del/2026 for assessment years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20, arise against the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals)-27 [in short, the “CIT(A)”], New Delhi’s orders, all dated 26.05.2025, passed in case nos. CIT(A), Delhi-29/10720/2016-17,10595/2017-18 and 10677/2018-19, involving proceedings under section 153C of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act’).
Heard both the parties. Case files perused.
2 Delays of 3 days in filing of the Revenue’s instant three appeals are condoned in larger interest of justice and in light of Collector, Land & Acquisition vs. Mst. Katiji & Others (1987) 167 ITR 471 (SC).
It transpires during the course of hearing that there arises the first and foremost issue of validity of impugned section 153C assessments itself herein framed by the learned Assessing Officer. The same admittedly goes to the root of the matter(s). We thus proceed to decide the same in our following detailed discussion:
There is hardly any dispute between the parties that the learned departmental authorities had carried out its section 132 search action in M/s. Alankit group of cases on 18.10.2019.
There is further no doubt that the searched party’s Assessing Officer got recorded his section 153C satisfaction which followed the assessee’s jurisdictional Assessing Officer’s latter round of satisfaction under the very provision (pages 155 to 157 in the case records), initiating the impugned proceedings under challenge. That being the case, we invite the Revenue’s attention to page 1774 case records that the learned Assessing Officer(s) had nowhere recorded that the corresponding seized material had “any bearing” on determination of the assessee’s total income. We thus quote Saksham Commodities Ltd. Vs. ITO (2024) 464 ITR 1 (Delhi)(HC) wherein their lordships have made it clear that the relevant satisfaction note must make it clear that the seized material sought to be used against the assessee indeed has a “bearing” of determination of its total taxable income. We accordingly reject the Revenue’s vehement contentions to quash all these section 153C r.w.s. 143(3) assessments for assessment years 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20 as non-est in the eyes of law.
All other remaining pleadings between the parties stand rendered academic.
These assessee’s three cross objections C.O. No. 61 to 63/Del/2026 are allowed and Revenue’s three appeals ITA Nos. 5471, 5472 & 5473/Del/2025 are dismissed. A copy of this common order be placed in the respective case files.