2014 (9) TMI 929 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance of provision for leave encashment - assessment of interest/commission received upfront on inland/export bills purchased/discounted/LCs opened - disallowance made under section 14A - Held that - Following decision of assessee s own previous case 2015 (4) TMI 174 - ITAT COCHIN and Dhanalakshmi Bank Ltd. vs. ACIT 2011 2011 (12) TMI 496 - ITAT COCHIN - Matter remanded back - Decided partly in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues involved:
1. Disallowance of provision for leave encashment.
2. Assessment of interest/commission received upfront on bills.
3. Disallowance made under section 14A of the I.T. Act.

Issue 1: Disallowance of provision for leave encashment
The appeal concerned the disallowance of provision for leave encashment for the assessment years 2008-09, 2009-10, and 2010-11. The appellant relied on a judgment by the Jurisdictional High Court in a similar case. The Tribunal referred to a previous order in the assessee's case and dismissed the ground, citing sec. 43B(f) of the Act, stating that provision for leave encashment cannot be allowed. The Tribunal differentiated the context of the cited judgment under sec. 263 of the I.T. Act, emphasizing that differing views on the allowability of such provisions do not warrant invoking sec. 263 by the CIT.

Issue 2: Assessment of interest/commission received upfront on bills
The next ground involved the assessment of interest/commission received upfront on bills, which was confirmed by the CIT(A). The Tribunal, following a previous order in the assessee's case, dismissed this ground. It noted that the income accrued to the assessee upon bill discounting, rejecting the argument that such income should be apportioned based on time. The Tribunal upheld the lower authorities' treatment of the amount accrued as income of the assessee for all three assessment years.

Issue 3: Disallowance under section 14A of the I.T. Act
The appellant raised an additional ground regarding the disallowance under section 14A of the I.T. Act, contending that investments in tax-free securities were made out of own funds. The appellant cited various judgments in support. The Tribunal considered the objection raised by the Ld. DR and referred to a previous case involving a similar issue. Following the earlier decision, the Tribunal remitted this issue back to the AO for fresh consideration, thereby partly allowing the appeals for statistical purposes.

In conclusion, the Tribunal addressed the issues of disallowance of provision for leave encashment, assessment of interest/commission on bills, and disallowance under section 14A of the I.T. Act. The Tribunal relied on previous orders, legal interpretations, and case law to reach decisions on each issue, ultimately partly allowing the appeals for statistical purposes.