ORDER

1. Delay in filing and refiling Special Leave Petitions is condoned.

2. Leave granted.

C.A.No.5888 of 2013 @ S.L.P.(C)No.8947 of 2011:

3. This appeal is directed against the judgment and order passed by the High Court of Gujarat in S.C.A. No.13787 of 2009, dated 30.03.2010, whereby and whereunder the High Court has set aside the Show Cause Notices issued by the Assessing Authority under Section 153C of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short 'the Act, 1961'), dated 07.10.2009.

4. Brief facts of the case are:

The respondent-assessee purchased a plot of land from “Samutkarsh Co-operative Housing Society” (for short ‘the Society’) being developed by one Savvy Infrastructure Ltd. In 2008, a search was conducted under Section 132 of the Act, 1961 in the premises of the Society and also at the office of Savvy Infrastructure Ltd. During the search certain documents were seized under Section 132A of the Act, 1961. Upon scrutiny, it was found that the seized documents reflected names of certain individuals including the assessee. Accordingly, for further proceedings the Assessing Authority had transmitted the seized documents to the jurisdictional Assessing Authority in whose jurisdiction the assessee was being assessed. After receipt of the said information/documents, the Assessing Authority has recorded a satisfaction note dated 06.10.2009, that, he has reason to believe that a case of escapement of income may exist and therefore the assessee’s case requires to be reassessed for assessment years 2001-2002 to 2006-2007 under Section 153C of the Act, 1961. The relevant paragraphs of the said satisfaction note read as under:

“SATISFACTION NOTE FOR INITIATION OF PROCEEDINGS U/S.153C OF THE INCOME TAX ACT, 1961

Name of the assessee : Shri Vijay H.Chandrani

AY : 2001-02 to 2006-07 U/s.153C and 2007-08 U/s.143(3).

The DCIT Central Circle 1(1) Ahmedabad, vide his letter DCIT/CC.1 (1)/Vijay Chandrani/Samutkarsh dated 30.03.2009 had intimated ITO Ward 7(4) Ahmedabad that the above mentioned assessee is one of member of the Co-op. Society namely Samutkarsh Co-op. Housing Society, the case of Samutkarsh Co-op. Housing Society as well as in the case of Sa' Infrastructure Ltd., Ahmedabad, proceedings U/s.132 were carried out by department. During the course of search, certain incriminating document pertaining to the assessee were also found......”

5. Accordingly, the Assessing Authority has issued six Show Cause Notices under Section 153C of the Act, 1961 to the assessee for reassessment of income of the aforesaid six assessment years and directed him to furnish return of income in respect of the said assessment years in prescribed form within thirty days of the receipt of the said notices, dated 07.10.2009.

6. Upon receipt of the said notice, the assessee by letter dated 11.11.2009 requested the Assessing Authority to furnish him with the copies of seized documents on the basis of which the said notices were issued. The Assessing Authority had provided the said documents to the assessee, whereafter the assessee has approached the High Court in a Writ Petition questioning the six Show Cause Notices dated 07.10.2009.

7. The High Court has elaborately examined the case at hand and delved into the statutory scheme for assessment in case of search and requisition as prescribed under Sections 153A, 153B and 153C of the Act, 1961 and reached the conclusion that the documents seized by the Assessing Authority under Section 132A do not belong to the assessee and therefore the condition precedent for issuance of the notice under Section 153C is not fulfilled. Accordingly the High Court has allowed the Writ Petition filed by the assessee and quashed the said notices issued by the Assessing Authority by the impugned judgment and order.

8. Aggrieved by the aforesaid judgment and order passed by the High Court, the Assessing Authority is before us in this appeal.

9. We have heard Shri Prasad, learned counsel for the Assessing Authority and Shri Amar Dave, learned co