Insights

Legal and tax analysis from The AS Lex

Income Tax
12 July 2026 · 11 min read

A Valuation Reference the AO Was Never Allowed to Make: Gujarat HC Quashes Reassessment Over the Pre-2012 Section 55A Rule

The Gujarat High Court quashes a Section 148 reassessment built entirely on a DVO report the AO had no power to obtain. Under the pre-1 July 2012 Section 55A, a valuation reference was permissible only where the assessee's declared value was less than fair market value — not more — and the 2012 amendment cannot be applied backwards to save it.

Read Article
Income Tax
4 July 2026 · 12 min read

Net Winnings, Not Gross: Hyderabad ITAT Deletes a Rs 3.54 Crore Online-Gaming Addition under Section 115BB

A rummy player deposited Rs 3.84 crore in buy-ins to win Rs 3.54 crore back — a real cash loss. The Hyderabad ITAT holds that "winnings" under Section 115BB means net winnings and deletes the addition — but a coordinate Hyderabad bench has held the opposite, leaving the pre-AY 2024-25 gross-vs-net question genuinely open.

Read Article
Income Tax
2 July 2026 · 13 min read

Commercial and Charitable Activities Can Co-Exist: Mumbai ITAT Restores Reliance Foundation Hospital's Registration

The Mumbai ITAT holds that medical relief is an independent charitable purpose under Section 2(15), the commercial-activity proviso does not apply to it, and commercial scale is not commercial purpose — restoring the trust's Section 12AB registration and 80G approval.

Read Article
Income Tax
1 July 2026 · 10 min read

Warranty Provision Is Not an Unascertained Liability: Gujarat HC Quashes Reassessment in Ammann India

The Gujarat High Court quashes a Section 148A(d) reassessment order, holding that reopening based on ignorance of the Supreme Court's Rotork Controls ruling and material already on record amounts to nothing more than a change of opinion.

Read Article
Income Tax International Tax
5 June 2026 · 8 min read

Secondment Salary Reimbursements Are Not Automatically FTS: ITAT Delhi in Honda R&D

ITAT Delhi deleted a Rs. 21.53 crore FTS addition, holding that genuine cost-to-cost salary reimbursements for seconded employees depend on real employer facts.

Read Article
Income Tax Transfer Pricing
2 June 2026 · 7 min read

Supreme Court Leaves Delhi HC's Pernod Ricard AMP Ruling Undisturbed

The Revenue's SLP failed on a 384-day delay and on merits, leaving intact key findings on AMP expenditure, Section 14A, and seized-material additions.

Read Article
Income Tax Transfer Pricing
8 March 2026 · 10 min read

Transfer Pricing Adjustment ≠ Misreporting: Madras HC Quashes Section 270A Penalty on Verizon

A landmark ruling draws a bright constitutional line — estimation-based TP adjustments cannot, in law, be equated with concealment or misrepresentation. The penalty regime has limits.

Read Article
Income Tax Transfer Pricing
5 March 2026 · 16 min read

When the Revenue Cherry-Picks: ITAT Delhi on the Limited Risk Model, Berry Ratio, and the Boundaries of the "Other Method"

A recent ITAT Delhi order doesn't just decide a case — it draws bright lines around four recurring transfer pricing and income tax controversies that affect every MNE operating in India.

Read Article
PMLA & ED
20 February 2026 · 10 min read

Ancestral or Inherited Properties Can Be Attached Under PMLA: Delhi High Court

The "it was my grandfather's house" defence is gone. A practitioner's analysis of Arun Suri v. Directorate of Enforcement and what it means for PMLA defence strategy.

Read Article
Income Tax
19 February 2026 · 12 min read

Section 148 After the 2021 Amendment: What the Supreme Court Actually Held

A practitioner's guide to the new reassessment regime — and where the battles are being fought today. Few provisions have produced as much litigation and confusion as Sections 147-151.

Read Article
Income Tax
19 February 2026 · 18 min read

The New Income Tax Bill, 2025: What Changes, What Stays, and What It Means for You

A practitioner's guide to India's biggest tax law overhaul in six decades — beyond the headlines. The Bill proposes to repeal and replace the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Read Article
Income Tax
9 March 2026 · 12 min read

ITAT Mumbai Deletes Cash Deposit Additions — Redeposits of Earlier Withdrawals Not "Unexplained"

ITAT Mumbai rules that cash redeposits from earlier bank withdrawals cannot be treated as unexplained money u/s 69A. Full analysis of Nitinkumar Kacharia v. DCIT with key takeaways.

Read Article