2007 (4) TMI 175 - HC - Income Tax

Deduction u/s 80HHC Assessee is engaged in the business of export of goods and claim deduction u/s 80HHC of the Act in respect to the income surrendered at the time of survey Held that assessee not entitle for deduction against surrendered income

Summary

Issues:
1. Entitlement to deduction under section 80HHC as an exporter on surrendered income of Rs. 13.00 lakhs.
2. Admissibility of deduction under section 80HHC on the amount of Rs. 13.00 lakhs shown as miscellaneous income.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Entitlement to deduction under section 80HHC as an exporter on surrendered income of Rs. 13.00 lakhs:
The assessee, a private limited company engaged in the business of export of goods, filed its return of income declaring Rs. 20,51,900. During a survey, stock worth Rs. 12,77,906 was found short, and the assessee surrendered additional income of Rs. 13 lakhs due to discrepancies in stock. The Assessing Officer rejected the claim for deduction under section 80HHC on the surrendered income. The Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) allowed the claim, but the Tribunal reversed this decision. The Tribunal held that the surrendered income cannot be included for the purpose of deduction under section 80HHC. The court emphasized that the deduction under section 80HHC is subject to specific conditions and cannot be presumed based on surrendered income from stock discrepancies. The court referred to a previous case where a similar plea was rejected. Consequently, the court dismissed the appeal, stating that the surrendered income cannot be added to the income from business for calculating the deduction under section 80HHC.

Issue 2: Admissibility of deduction under section 80HHC on the amount of Rs. 13.00 lakhs shown as miscellaneous income:
The Tribunal also considered whether the deduction under section 80HHC is admissible on the amount of Rs. 13.00 lakhs shown as miscellaneous income. The court highlighted that the real character of the transaction must be considered, and the nomenclature given is not relevant. Since the surrendered income was not automatically considered as income from exports, the assessee's plea to include it for deduction under section 80HHC was rejected. The court reiterated that the conditions specified under section 80HHC must be met for claiming the deduction. As a result, the court found no merit in the appeal and dismissed it.

This judgment clarifies that the entitlement to deduction under section 80HHC for exporters is subject to specific conditions and cannot be assumed based on surrendered income from discrepancies in stock. The real character of the transaction is crucial in determining the admissibility of deductions, and nomenclature alone is not sufficient. The court's decision underscores the importance of meeting the specified conditions for claiming deductions under the Income-tax Act, 1961.