EMARALD LOGISTIC PRIVATE LIMITED ,KOLKATA vs. I.T.O.WARD-5(3), KOLKATA

The assessee in the present case is a Company, which is engaged in the business of shipping agent and international freight forwarder. The return of income for the year under consideration was filed by it on 29.09.2015 declaring total income of Rs.1,99,060/-. During the course of assessment proceedings, the assessee-company was called upon by the Assessing Officer to produce the books of account and the relevant supporting documentary evidence for verification. The assessee-company, Assessment Year: 2015-2016 Emarald Logistic Pvt. Limited however, failed to comply with the said requirement. In the absence of books of account and other supporting documentary evidence, the Assessing Officer held that other expenses claimed by the assessee aggregating to Rs.1,25,18,793/- were not verifiable and a disallowance of Rs.12,51,880/- being 10% of the said expenses was made by him in the assessment completed under section 143(3) vide an order dated 27.12.2017. On appeal, the ld. CIT(Appeals) confirmed the said disallowance made by the Assessing Officer observing that in the absence of books of account and other supporting documentary evidence, the claim of the assessee for other expenses was not fully verifiable. Aggrieved by the order of the ld. CIT(Appeals), the assessee has preferred this appeal before the Tribunal.

I have heard the arguments of both the sides and also perused the relevant material available on record. The limited contention raised by the ld. Counsel for the assessee is that proper and sufficient opportunity was not afforded by the Assessing Officer to the assessee during the course of assessment proceedings to produce the books of account and the relevant documentary evidence in order to support and substantiate its claim for other expenses. He has contended that the assessee-company is in a position to produce the same for verification before the Assessing Officer and urged that an opportunity may be given to the assessee by sending the matter back to the Assessing Officer. Since the ld. D.R. has also not raised any objection for sending the matter back to the Assessing Officer for proper verification, I set aside the impugned order passed by the ld. CIT(Appeals) on this issue confirming the disallowance made by the Assessing Officer out of other expenses and restore the matter to the file of the Assessing Officer for deciding the same afresh after giving the assessee proper and sufficient opportunity to produce the books of account and relevant documentary evidence to support and substantiate its claim for other expenses. As undertaken by the ld. Counsel for the assessee, the assessee shall make due compliance before the Assessing Assessment Year: 2015-2016 Emarald Logistic Pvt. Limited Officer and shall extend all the possible cooperation in order to enable the Assessing Officer to complete the assessment afresh expeditiously.

In the result, the appeal of the assessee is treated as allowed for statistical purposes. Order pronounced in the open Court on January 08, 2020.