2010 (12) TMI 439 - AT - Income Tax

Deduction u/s 80IB - Disallowance u/s 40(a)(ia) - Condonation of delay - it had filed a Memorandum of Cross Objection on 4.8.2010 wherein it was mentioned the date of notice of the appeal filed by the Revenue got served on it on 5.7.2010 and, accordingly, it was under a bona fide belief that the Cross Objection was filed within 30 days - Delay is condoned Regarding deduction u/s 80IB - Tribunal in the assessee s own case for the AY 2003-04 cited supra wherein in an identical issue the matter was remitted back on the file of the AO with a direction (at the cost of repetition) In case the assessee is able to demonstrate that interest bearing loans were used for making deposits, then such interest will be reduced from the interest received from bank deposits for the purpose of computing deduction u/s 80B - Decided in the favour of assessee by way of remand Regarding addition u/s 40(a)(ia) - the assessment was concluded prior to the amendment of the provisions of s.40(a)(ia) of the Act and on the basis of existing provisions, the AO had resorted to disallow the said claim - Decided in the favour of assessee by way of remand

Summary

Issues involved:
1. Deletion of addition of Rs.13,28,529 on account of excess claim of deduction u/s 80IB of the Act.
2. Deletion of addition of Rs.49,68,071 made u/s 40(a)(ia) of the Act.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Deletion of addition of Rs.13,28,529 on account of excess claim of deduction u/s 80IB of the Act:
The Revenue contended that the CIT (A) erred in deleting the addition without considering the interest exclusion requirement for allowing deduction under section 80IB, as highlighted in a previous Tribunal order. The CIT (A) justified the deletion based on a similar decision in the appellant's case for a previous assessment year. However, the Tribunal observed that the CIT (A) failed to acknowledge the specific directions given in the previous Tribunal order regarding interest exclusion for computing the deduction under section 80IB. Consequently, the Tribunal remitted the issue back to the Assessing Officer (AO) for proper examination in line with the Tribunal's previous directions.

Issue 2: Deletion of addition of Rs.49,68,071 u/s 40(a)(ia) of the Act:
The Revenue argued that the CIT (A) wrongly deleted the addition without verifying the relevant facts concerning the tax deduction at source as per the amended provisions of section 40(a)(ia) of the Act. The Tribunal noted that the CIT (A) did not thoroughly analyze the retrospective amendment to section 40(a)(ia) and its impact on the case. Therefore, the Tribunal directed the issue to be sent back to the AO for a fresh assessment considering the amended provisions of section 40(a)(ia) with retrospective effect from 1.4.2005. The AO was instructed to provide the assessee with a reasonable opportunity to present their case before taking any action in accordance with the Act.

Cross Objections:
The Tribunal decided not to address the assessee's cross objections related to deductions under sections 80-IB and 40(a)(ia) as both issues were remitted back to the AO for fresh consideration. Consequently, the cross objections were deemed superfluous. The appeals of the Revenue and the cross objections of the assessee were treated as allowed for statistical purposes.

In conclusion, the Tribunal's judgment remitted both issues back to the AO for reevaluation in light of the relevant legal provisions and previous Tribunal directions, ensuring a fair and thorough assessment of the matters at hand.