2018 (2) TMI 91 - AT - Income Tax

Addition of subscription expenses - allowable busniss expenses - whether this expenditure was incurred wholly and exclusively for the purpose of business - Held that - No infirmity in the order of the Ld. CIT(A) in allowing the expenses incurred for membership in club which has nexus to the business of the assessee, which is required to forge friendship and required to entertain clients inorder to make progress and benifits business in the long run. See Gujarat State Export Corporation Limited Versus CIT 1993 (9) TMI 52 - GUJARAT High Court - Decided against revenue Addition on account of unsecured loans as cash credit u/s. 68 - CIT-A allowed the claim - Held that - The borrowing in this year is only from five parties and that too from NBFC. The company from which the assessee has borrowed funds have enough assets and are income tax assessee. The assessee has discharged its burden of proof and thereafter, if the AO had to make any additions then he should have discredited the evidences adduced by the assessee. Without doing so, merely because notice of 3 creditors were returned back to him un-served, cannot be the sole basis for addition and therefore, the ld CIT(A) has rightly deleted the same. - Decided against revenue

Summary

Issues:
1. Deletion of addition of subscription expenses.
2. Deletion of addition on account of unsecured loans as cash credit u/s. 68 of the Income-tax Act, 1961.

Issue 1 - Deletion of Addition of Subscription Expenses:
The appeal involved the deletion of an addition of ?2,15,357 on account of subscription expenses for the assessment year 2008-09. The AO disallowed the expenditure as the assessee failed to establish that it was incurred wholly and exclusively for the purpose of business. However, the Ld. CIT(A) allowed the appeal, stating that the subscription expenses were related to the appellant's business and thus allowable as business deductions. The revenue challenged this decision, arguing that the expenses were non-business in nature. The tribunal upheld the Ld. CIT(A)'s order, noting that the expenses were incurred for business purposes and were allowable deductions. The tribunal cited judicial precedents supporting the deduction of membership fees paid to a club for business exigency. The decision was in line with previous court rulings, and the tribunal dismissed the revenue's appeal.

Issue 2 - Deletion of Addition on Account of Unsecured Loans as Cash Credit:
The second issue pertained to the deletion of an addition of ?66,52,649 on account of unsecured loans treated as cash credit under section 68 of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The AO had treated the loans as unexplained cash credit due to the assessee's failure to establish the identity, genuineness of the transaction, and creditworthiness of the loan creditors. The Ld. CIT(A) overturned this decision, stating that the loans were from five parties, all companies assessed to income tax, and provided cheques for the loans. The Ld. CIT(A) found that the creditors had substantial assets and the assessing officer's suspicion of them being jama kharchi companies was unfounded. The Ld. CIT(A) held that the appellant had discharged its burden of proof regarding the unsecured loans, citing relevant case law. The tribunal agreed with the Ld. CIT(A)'s findings, noting that the assessee had provided sufficient evidence to support the legitimacy of the loans. The tribunal upheld the deletion of the addition under section 68 and the corresponding disallowance of interest. The revenue's appeal was dismissed.

In conclusion, the Appellate Tribunal ITAT Kolkata adjudicated on the deletion of addition of subscription expenses and the deletion of addition on account of unsecured loans treated as cash credit. The tribunal upheld the decisions of the Ld. CIT(A) in both instances, emphasizing the need for expenses to be related to business purposes and for the assessee to establish the legitimacy of loans. The tribunal's rulings were supported by legal precedents, leading to the dismissal of the revenue's appeal in both matters.