2016 (1) TMI 1225 - AT - Income Tax

Profit on sale of shares - Long Term and Short Term Capital Gain OR business income - Held that - CIT(A) has rightly held that the transaction of shares carried out by the assessee during the year should be treated as investments and the short term capital gain on sale of such shares shall be assessed under the head capital gain and not as business income. The reason being that the assessee s business was not that of share transaction but that of providing online and real time education to retail and institutional plans on a variety of programmes and subject. In fact in earlier year also the CIT(A) has held the same. Therefore, Ground No. 1 of the Revenue is dismissed. Depreciation on computer accessories and peripherals - Held that - Depreciation has been rightly allowed by the CIT(A) on the basis of decision in case of CIT vs. BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd. 2010 (8) TMI 58 - DELHI HIGH COURT wherein it was held that computer accessories and peripherals such as printers, scanners and server etc. form an integral part of the computer system and are therefore, entitled to depreciation @ 60%. The issue is covered discussed therein is in favour of the assessee. Section 14A though was discussed by the Assessing Officer and CIT(A), but the same was not in consonance with invocation of Rule 8D. Thus, this issue needs to be looked into, therefore, we remand back this issue to the Assessing Officer.

Summary

Issues Involved:
1. Classification of profit on sale of shares as Long Term and Short Term Capital Gain or business income.
2. Allowance of depreciation on specific assets at a higher rate.
3. Disallowance of expenses under Section 14A towards earning exempted income.

Analysis:
1. Classification of Profit on Sale of Shares:
The appellant disputed the categorization of profit on the sale of shares as Long Term and Short Term Capital Gain instead of business income. The Assessing Officer treated the short term capital gain as business income, disallowing it. However, the CIT(A) ruled in favor of the assessee, stating that the transaction of shares should be considered as investments due to the nature of the business being online education services. The CIT(A) directed the Assessing Officer to treat the income from shares as capital gains, not business income. The decision was supported by previous rulings. Thus, Ground No. 1 of the Revenue was dismissed.

2. Allowance of Depreciation:
Regarding the allowance of depreciation on specific assets at a higher rate, the Revenue's appeal was dismissed. The CIT(A) justified the allowance of depreciation based on precedents like the case of M/s. Datacraft India Limited vs. DCIT and Delhi High Court's decision in the case of CIT vs. BSES Rajdhani Power Ltd. These cases established that certain computer accessories and peripherals are integral to the computer system and are eligible for depreciation at a higher rate of 60%. As the issue was settled in favor of the assessee, the Revenue's appeal on this ground was also dismissed.

3. Disallowance of Expenses under Section 14A:
The Cross Objection raised the issue of disallowance of expenses under Section 14A towards earning exempted income. While Section 14A was discussed by the Assessing Officer and CIT(A), the invocation of Rule 8D was not in line with the discussion. Therefore, the matter was remanded back to the Assessing Officer for further examination. Consequently, the Revenue's appeal was dismissed, and the cross objection of the assessee was partly allowed for statistical purposes.

In conclusion, the judgment delivered by the Appellate Tribunal ITAT DELHI addressed the issues of classification of profit on sale of shares, allowance of depreciation, and disallowance of expenses under Section 14A in a detailed manner, providing clarity on each aspect of the case.