SAFALI MAHENDRAKUMAR PATEL,ANAND vs. THE ITO, WARD-4, ANAND

Ld. CIT(A) (NFAC) has erred in law and on facts in sustaining the addition made by Ld. Assessing Officer of Rs.18,19,000/- u/s 69 of the I.T. Act. ”

In this case, the assessee did not file a return of income for the relevant Assessment Year 2012–13. On the basis of information received that the assessee had purchased an immovable property valued at Rs.69,36,000/-, the Assessing Asst. Year : 2012-13 - 2– Officer reopened the assessment under section 147 of the Act. During the course of reassessment proceedings, it was submitted by the assessee that the assessee’s share in the said property was one-fourth, amounting to Rs.18,19,000/-. As the assessee failed to satisfactorily explain the source of this investment, the Assessing Officer made an addition of Rs.18,19,000/- under section 69 of the Act as unexplained investment. On appeal before the Ld. CIT(A), no compliance was made by the assessee. Hence, the Ld. CIT(A) adjudicated the matter ex-parte, based on the statement of facts, grounds of appeal, and assessment records, and upheld the addition made by the Assessing Officer.

Aggrieved by the orders of the authorities below, the assessee is now in appeal before the Tribunal.

We have perused the order of the authorities below and the material placed on record. It is a matter of record that despite multiple opportunities, the assessee failed to appear or file any submissions before the Ld. CIT(A), leading to ex-parte disposal of the appeal. We are, however, of the considered view that the assessee should be granted one final opportunity to present her case. We, therefore, set aside the impugned order of the Ld. CIT(A) dated 20.12.2023 and restore the matter to his file for fresh adjudication, de novo, after giving due opportunity to the assessee. The assessee is directed to fully cooperate with the proceedings and respond to the notices issued by the Ld. CIT(A) without seeking unwarranted adjournments.

In the result, the appeal of the assessee is allowed for statistical purposes.

अपीलाथ / The Appellant 2.  थ / The Respondent. 3. संबंिधतआयकरआयु / Concerned CIT 4. आयकरआयु(अपील) / The CIT(A)- 5. िवभागीयितिनिध, आयकरअपीलीयअिधकरण, अहमदाबाद/ DR, ITAT, Ahmedabad 6. गाड फाईल/ Guard file.