2013 (1) TMI 819 - AT - Income Tax

Whether the purchases amounts to Bogus purchase - disallowance of interest - Held that - assessee has furnished sufficient evidence in the form of Bank account, copy of Sales Tax return etc - comparison of the G.P. shows that the purchases were genuine - Thus the addition on account of bogus purchases is not warranted - Decided if favor of assessee Held that - Assessee had taken loan of ₹ 20,75,000/- in his individual capacity and not for the business - Further the loan was transferred to the partnership firm and thus used for the purpose of business - interest paid thereon is allowable under section 36(1)(iii) - Decided in favor of assessee

Summary

Issues:
1. Addition of &8377; 37,65,836 on account of purchases from M/s. Gopal Enterprises
2. Disallowance of interest of &8377; 2,55,536

Analysis:

Issue 1: Addition of &8377; 37,65,836 on account of purchases from M/s. Gopal Enterprises

The assessee appealed against the addition of &8377; 37,65,836 made by the Assessing Officer (A.O.) on purchases from M/s. Gopal Enterprises. The A.O. treated the entire purchase amount as bogus due to incomplete payments and lack of verifiable information. The CIT(A) upheld the addition, emphasizing the failure of the assessee to prove the genuineness of the purchases. However, a partial relief of &8377; 1,44,075 was granted. Additionally, an amount of &8377; 5,00,000 added by the A.O. as commission expenses was deleted by the CIT(A) as it was covered by the surrendered amount related to bogus purchases. Upon review, the ITAT found that the A.O.'s addition was not justified as the assessee had provided evidence such as bank accounts and sales tax returns. The ITAT analyzed the Gross Profit (G.P.) rates over years, concluding that the purchases were genuine and used for business purposes. The ITAT confirmed the addition of &8377; 5,00,000 but deleted the addition of &8377; 38,68,137, considering the evidence presented by the assessee.

Issue 2: Disallowance of interest of &8377; 2,55,536

The A.O. disallowed interest of &8377; 2,55,536 paid to Smt. Renu Jain, stating it was not for business purposes. The CIT(A) upheld this disallowance. However, the ITAT noted that the loan from Smt. Renu Jain was utilized for business, as evidenced by the balance sheet. Referring to relevant case law, the ITAT concluded that the interest paid was allowable under section 36(1)(iii) of the Income Tax Act. Consequently, the ITAT set aside the decisions of the Revenue Authorities and deleted the addition of &8377; 2,55,536.

In conclusion, the ITAT partly allowed the appeal of the assessee, deleting the additions related to purchases from M/s. Gopal Enterprises and the disallowed interest amount, based on the evidence presented and legal provisions.