2024 (2) TMI 757 - SCH - Income Tax

Review petition - Nature of expenses - apportioning the licence fee as partly revenue and partly capital - variable licence fee paid by the assessees under the New Telecom Policy, 1999 to Department of Telecommunications ( DoT ) - Allowability of revenue expenses u/s 37 or capital in nature to be amortised u/s 35ABB - Payment of royalty - distinction between a payment made to acquire a right, and payment of royalty in a broad sense - As decided in BHARTI HEXACOM LTD. 2023 (10) TMI 786 - SUPREME COURT single transaction cannot be split up, in an artificial manner into a capital payment and revenue payments by simply considering the mode of payment. Such a characterisation would be contrary to the settled position of law - High Court of Delhi was not right in apportioning the expenditure incurred towards establishing, operating and maintaining telecom services, as partly revenue and partly capital by dividing the licence fee into two periods HELD THAT - Having carefully gone through the Review Petition, the order under challenge and the papers annexed therewith, we are satisfied that there is no error apparent on the face of the record or any merit in the Review Petition, warranting reconsideration of the order impugned. The Review Petition is, accordingly, dismissed.

Summary

The Supreme Court rejected the application for oral hearing of the Review Petition, finding no error apparent on the face of the record or merit in the petition. The Review Petition was dismissed, and pending applications were disposed of.