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October 2023

Glimpses of Supreme Court Rulings

By Kishor Karia, Chartered Accountant | Atul Jasani, Advocate
Reading Time 13 mins

46. CIT vs. AbhisarBuildwell Pvt Ltd (2023) 454 ITR 212 (SC)

Search and seizure — Assessment u/s 153A —Procedure - (i) In case of search under section 132 or requisition under section 132A, the AO assumes the jurisdiction for block assessment under section 153A; (ii) all pending assessments / reassessments shall stand abated; (iii) in case any incriminating material is found / unearthed, even, in case of unabated / completed assessments, the AO would assume the jurisdiction to assess or reassess the ‘total income’ taking into consideration the incriminating material unearthed during the search and the other material available with the AO including the income declared in the returns; and (iv) in case no incriminating material is unearthed during the search, the AO cannot assess or reassess taking into consideration the other material in respect of completed assessments / unabated assessments, meaning thereby, in respect of completed/unabated assessments, no addition can be made by the AO in absence of any incriminating material found during the course of search under section 132 or requisition under section 132A of the Act, 1961 — however, the completed / unabated assessments can be reopened by the AO in exercise of powers under sections 147 / 148 of the Act, subject to fulfillment of the conditions as envisaged / mentioned under sections 147 / 148 of the