2015 (3) TMI 1309 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance of notional interest on advances/share application money on the ground that the said advance was for acquiring shares - Held that - Authorized Representative for the assessee has raised a new plea that factually, there was no nexus between the borrowed funds and the advances made to the said parties. In support thereof, the assessee has furnished by way of additional evidence the bank statement showing working of bank account on the relevant dates of advances. The said evidences filed by the assessee are by way of additional evidence. However, since the additional evidence goes to the root of the issue, we admit the same and restore the issue back to the file of CIT(A) to adjudicate the issue after verifying the documents furnished by the assessee by way of additional evidences. We remit the issue back to the file of CIT(A), who shall decide the issue after affording reasonable opportunity of hearing to the assessee. The grounds of appeal raised by the assessee are thus, allowed for statistical purposes. Addition of Creditors - Held that - The assessee had also furnished confirmations from the said parties and has also furnished the Ledger accounts of the previous years, which reflect business transactions with the said parties. However, the said ground of appeal was not pressed before the CIT(A) and hence, the same was dismissed as not pressed. The plea of the learned Authorized Representative for the assessee before us was that by some confusion, the said ground of appeal was not pressed before the CIT(A).However, creditors were genuine and verifiable. With regard to some of creditors, the assessee explained that payments were made in the subsequent years, for which the bank certificates have been furnished by way of additional evidences. In respect of the other creditors, it was pointed out that the addition is not warranted since the credit balance is the opening balance as on 01.04.2008 and no transaction has been transacted during the year. However, no such plea was raised before the authorities below. Thus we deem it fit to restore the issue to the file of CIT(A) and direct the CIT(A) to adjudicate the same after verifying the contention of the assessee and to decide the issue in accordance with the law, after affording reasonable opportunity of hearing to the assessee. The additional ground of appeal raised by the assessee is thus, allowed for statistical purposes.

Summary

Issues:
1. Disallowance of notional interest on advances/share application money
2. Addition of unverifiable creditors

Issue 1: Disallowance of notional interest on advances/share application money:

The appeal was against the disallowance of notional interest on advances/share application money made to a company for acquiring shares. The Assessing Officer disallowed the interest expenditure as the funds were diverted for non-business purposes. The CIT(A) upheld the disallowance, restricting it to a certain amount. The appellant argued that the advances were made to a sister concern for business purposes, supported by additional evidence of bank statements. The Tribunal admitted the additional evidence and remitted the issue back to the CIT(A) for further examination, allowing the appeal for statistical purposes.

Issue 2: Addition of unverifiable creditors:

The Assessing Officer added a significant amount as unverifiable creditors due to lack of details provided by the assessee. Despite attempts to verify the creditors, no response was received. The CIT(A) dismissed the ground of appeal as not pressed. However, before the Tribunal, the assessee sought to raise an additional ground, presenting evidence of a survey where certain parties were accepted as non-genuine under pressure. The Tribunal considered the additional evidence and directed the CIT(A) to reexamine the issue, emphasizing the need for a fair opportunity to be provided to the assessee. The appeal was allowed for statistical purposes.

In conclusion, the Tribunal addressed the issues of disallowance of notional interest on advances/share application money and the addition of unverifiable creditors by admitting additional evidence and remitting the matters back to the CIT(A) for fresh consideration. The appeal was allowed solely for statistical purposes.