2023 (1) TMI 1393 - HC - Income Tax

Addition u/s 69C - AO and CIT(A) disallowed the opening stock on the ground that in the order transaction of the appellant with KFIL was not verifiable and only closing stock was reflected in the books of accounts where it had actually been sold outside the books, therefore, held that there was actually no closing stock of the amount included in the income of the assessee - ITAT deleted addition - HELD THAT - ITAT correctly held profit declared by the assessee for Assessment Year 2009-10 includes the closing stock of the said amount but no set-off has been provided by treating the same at the nil value and therefore, the Tribunal held that the closing stock of Assessment Year 2009-10 is required to be treated as opening stock and could not have been disallowed by the Assessing Officer as well as by CIT(A). No addition is require to be made on account of opening stock as the same is tax natural exercise. Therefore we hereby set aside the finding of the learned CIT(A) and direct the AO to delete the addition made by him. Hence, the ground of appeal raised by the assessee is hereby allowed.

Summary

Issues:
1. Addition of opening stock under Section 69C of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
2. Whether the Tribunal's decision to delete the addition of opening stock was correct.

Issue 1: Addition of Opening Stock under Section 69C:
The appellant revenue challenged the order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) regarding the addition of Rs. 2,93,12,514/- as opening stock in the assessment year 2010-11. The dispute arose from the CIT(A)'s finding that there was no closing stock in the previous assessment year 2009-10, making the opening stock non-existent. Both the Assessing Officer and CIT(A) disallowed the opening stock based on this premise. However, the Tribunal disagreed, stating that the closing stock of the previous year should be treated as the opening stock for the current year. The Tribunal highlighted that the profit declared by the assessee for the previous year already included the closing stock amount, and double taxation would occur if the opening stock was disallowed without providing a setoff. The Tribunal concluded that no addition was necessary for the opening stock, as it would be a tax-neutral exercise.

Issue 2: Tribunal's Decision on Deletion of Opening Stock Addition:
The Tribunal's decision to delete the addition of Rs. 2,93,12,514/- as opening stock under Section 69C of the Act was based on the reasoning that the closing stock from the previous assessment year should be considered as the opening stock for the current year. The Tribunal emphasized that taxing the closing stock in the previous year and adding the same amount as opening stock in the current year would result in double taxation, which is not permissible under the law. Therefore, the Tribunal set aside the CIT(A)'s findings and directed the Assessing Officer to delete the addition. The High Court concurred with the Tribunal's decision, stating that no substantial questions of law arose from the Tribunal's order. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed as devoid of merit.

This detailed analysis of the judgment addresses the issues raised in the case, focusing on the addition of opening stock under Section 69C of the Income Tax Act and the correctness of the Tribunal's decision to delete the addition.