The Delhi Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) held that Rs. 21.60 lakh loan received by a wife from her husband could not be treated as unexplained when the lender’s Income Tax Return, confirmation and banking transactions established genuineness of the transaction.
Isha Mehta ( assessee) filed her income tax return declaring taxable income of Rs. 17.20 lakh. Her case was selected for scrutiny because some lenders from whom she had received unsecured loans had allegedly not filed their income tax returns.
The Assessing Officer (AO) examined loans from five parties and accepted three of them. The dispute remained over Rs. 21.60 lakh received from the assessee’s husband, Rishi Mehta and one received from Stellar Leisure World LLP. The AO added a total of Rs. 1.91 crore under Section 68 and the CIT(A) upheld the addition.
For loan from her husband, the AO observed that there was opening balance of Rs. 2 lakh which had not been repaid while a further Rs. 21.60 lakh was advanced even though his returned income was Rs. 17.12 lakh. The AO doubted his creditworthiness and the genuineness of the loan.
The assessee’s counsel relied on the assessee’s husband’s ITR, loan confirmation and audited balance sheet. The transaction was made through regular banking channels and the amount advanced to the assessee was reflected in the lender’s audited balance sheet.
The two-member bench comprising M. Balaganesh (Accountant Member) and Kavitha Rajagopal (Judicial Member) observed “after the furnishing of all the requisite documents by the assessee before the Learned AO, the onus gets shifted to the revenue.”
The AO had not carried out any verification to test those documents. The tribunal also found that the Rs. 1.70 crore transaction with Stellar Leisure World LLP was also supported by ITRs, banking transactions, repayment details and the lender’s balance sheet. The tribunal deleted the entire Rs. 1.91 crore addition and allowed the assessee’s appeal.
The Delhi Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) held that Rs. 21.60 lakh loan received by a wife from her husband could not be treated as unexplained when the lender’s Income Tax Return, confirmation and banking transactions established genuineness of the transaction.
Isha Mehta ( assessee) filed her income tax return declaring taxable income of Rs. 17.20 lakh. Her case was selected for scrutiny because some lenders from whom she had received unsecured loans had allegedly not filed their income tax returns.
The Assessing Officer (AO) examined loans from five parties and accepted three of them. The dispute remained over Rs. 21.60 lakh received from the assessee’s husband, Rishi Mehta and one received from Stellar Leisure World LLP. The AO added a total of Rs. 1.91 crore under Section 68 and the CIT(A) upheld the addition.
For loan from her husband, the AO observed that there was opening balance of Rs. 2 lakh which had not been repaid while a further Rs. 21.60 lakh was advanced even though his returned income was Rs. 17.12 lakh. The AO doubted his creditworthiness and the genuineness of the loan.
The assessee’s counsel relied on the assessee’s husband’s ITR, loan confirmation and audited balance sheet. The transaction was made through regular banking channels and the amount advanced to the assessee was reflected in the lender’s audited balance sheet.
The two-member bench comprising M. Balaganesh (Accountant Member) and Kavitha Rajagopal (Judicial Member) observed “after the furnishing of all the requisite documents by the assessee before the Learned AO, the onus gets shifted to the revenue.”
The AO had not carried out any verification to test those documents. The tribunal also found that the Rs. 1.70 crore transaction with Stellar Leisure World LLP was also supported by ITRs, banking transactions, repayment details and the lender’s balance sheet. The tribunal deleted the entire Rs. 1.91 crore addition and allowed the assessee’s appeal
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Isha Mehta vs Income Tax Officer
CITATION : 2026 TAXSCAN (ITAT) 1259Case Number : I.T.A. No. 592/Del/2026Date of Judgement : 19 August 2026Coram : BALAGANESHCounsel of Appellant : S. Krishnan, AdvCounsel Of Respondent : Rajesh Tiwari
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