2013 (7) TMI 514 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance of interest expenses u/s. 14A - Held that - As decided in case of CCI Ltd. (2012 (4) TMI 282 - KARNATAKA HIGH COURT) that if the assessee is a dealer of shares and securities then it cannot be said that such purchases of shares and holding of shares were for the purpose of earning of dividend income and hence, expenditure incurred in acquiring these shares cannot be disallowed u/s. 14A. In the present case, this is admitted position of fact that assessee is a dealer in shares and securities also noted by AO in his assessment order and nothing has been brought on record by CIT-DR of the Revenue to show otherwise. Since assessee is dealing in shares thus disallowance made by AO u/s. 14A on account of interest expenditure on proportionate basis cannot be sustained. In favour of assessee.

Issues involved:
1. Validity of assessment under section 153A of the Income Tax Act.
2. Disallowance of interest expenditure against income from business and profession.
3. Disallowance of interest expenses under section 14A of the Act.

Analysis:

1. Validity of assessment under section 153A of the Income Tax Act:
The appeal raised concerns about the validity of the assessment under section 153A of the Income Tax Act. The CIT(A) did not provide any finding on this issue. The assessee contended that the assessments framed by the Assessing Officer were legally flawed and should be quashed. While ground No.1 was not pressed by the assessee, grounds No.2 and 3 were discussed. The issue raised in ground No.4 was not decided by the CIT(A), leading to its restoration for further consideration. The Tribunal directed the CIT(A) to decide the ground raised by the assessee after providing a reasonable opportunity to both sides. Consequently, the appeal was partly allowed for statistical purposes.

2. Disallowance of interest expenditure against income from business and profession:
In the appeal filed by the Revenue concerning the disallowance of interest expenses under section 14A of the Act, the CIT(A) had deleted the disallowance. The Revenue contended that the disallowance should not have been deleted. Various decisions and judgments were cited by both sides in support of their arguments. The Tribunal, after considering the submissions and relevant judgments, particularly the decision of the Hon'ble Karnataka High Court in the case of CCI Ltd., held that since the assessee was a dealer in shares and securities, the disallowance made by the Assessing Officer on account of interest expenditure on a proportionate basis could not be sustained. Consequently, the Tribunal rejected the ground raised by the Revenue, leading to the dismissal of the Revenue's appeal.

3. Disallowance of interest expenses under section 14A of the Act:
The issue of disallowance of interest expenditure under section 14A of the Act was common in various appeals filed by the Revenue. The Revenue challenged the deletion of disallowance made by the Assessing Officer in these cases. The facts in these appeals were similar to those in the case of Hina N Parikh, where the issue was decided in favor of the assessee following the judgment of the Hon'ble Karnataka High Court in the case of CCI Ltd. Consequently, in these appeals as well, the Tribunal decided in favor of the assessee, leading to the dismissal of the Revenue's appeals. The COs filed by the assessee were also dismissed as not pressed.

In conclusion, the Tribunal partly allowed one appeal of the assessee for statistical purposes and dismissed all the appeals and cross-objections filed by the Revenue and the assessee, respectively. The judgments and decisions cited played a crucial role in determining the outcomes of the appeals, especially in matters related to the disallowance of interest expenses under section 14A of the Income Tax Act.

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