2013 (9) TMI 361 - AT - Income Tax

Nature of Income - Dealing in vegetable seeds - Agricultural Income OR Business Income - The solitary issue that the AO exceeded his jurisdiction to convert the total agricultural income rendered by the assessee proportionately as business income - without indicating as to how the adoption of percentage for business and agriculture separately could be held when the past history of the assessee s case had been acceptance of the entire income from agricultural operation being seeds producing farm maintained by the partners in the firm Held that - The Assessing Officer himself misdirected that purchases ought to have been accounted for which was never the case of the assessee - the Assessing Officer had tried to invoke his own method of carrying out the agricultural operation to compute the income from business separately but on the basis of the same facts that the activities were carried out for the purpose of germinating seeds which were certified seeds not fit for human consumption. The Assessing Officer in his enthusiasm had tried to dilute his own finding by adopting percentage method for segregating business activity for generating agricultural income - The books of account of the assessee were audited and the financial statements were certified as per the audit report in Form 3CB - Maintenance of records was not disputed and the expenditure incurred for the agricultural operation carried out were also not doubted - Determination of gross margin and net margin therefore do not appear to be a requirement of agricultural operation when the assessee is reaping the nature s bounty. The denial made by both the authorities in not accepting the actual version of the assessee in spite of finding from spot verification which the Inspector of Income-tax Department in earlier years had noted that agricultural operations were being carried out by the assessee could not be changed to earning of income from trading of seeds, when the assessee was able to maintain three crops in a year dealing in vegetable seeds alone - the assessee has submitted the copies of the orders of the authorities below for the assessment years 2003-04 and 2007-08 passed under section 143(3) when exemption under section 10(1) has been granted to the assessee. No specific defects have been found out in the books of account therefore could not be a material for determining correct income involving the provisions of section 145(3) by changing the nature of the very income claimed exempted under section 10(1) - The expenditure incurred for carrying out agricultural activity would yield agricultural produce and the percentage of margin earned on sale of agricultural produce cannot be the basis for bifurcating margin from business activity and margin from agricultural activity when whole of the expenditure is allowable by the Assessing Officer as for carrying out agricultural operations Decided in favour of Assessee.

Issues Involved:
1. Jurisdiction of the Assessing Officer in converting agricultural income to business income.
2. Consistency in the treatment of income as agricultural income in previous assessment years.
3. Validity of the assessment method and rejection of books of account.
4. Principles of natural justice and procedural fairness.
5. Relevance and application of judicial precedents.

Detailed Analysis:

1. Jurisdiction of the Assessing Officer in Converting Agricultural Income to Business Income:
The primary issue in this appeal is whether the Assessing Officer exceeded his jurisdiction by converting the total agricultural income declared by the assessee into business income based on assumptions and presumptions. The Assessing Officer concluded that a significant portion of the turnover should be treated as business income due to the high gross margin, thus segregating Rs. 42,30,530 as business income and Rs. 2,36,760 as agricultural income. This conversion was confirmed by the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) without providing adequate reasoning or addressing the assessee's contentions.

2. Consistency in the Treatment of Income as Agricultural Income in Previous Assessment Years:
The assessee argued that the firm has been engaged in agricultural activities since the assessment year 1993-94, and in previous years, the income was consistently accepted as agricultural income exempt under section 10(1) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The assessments for earlier years, including 2003-04 and 2007-08, were completed accepting the income as agricultural income. The Assessing Officer's sudden change in the classification of income for the current year was based on suspicion and without new facts.

3. Validity of the Assessment Method and Rejection of Books of Account:
The Assessing Officer did not reject the books of account under section 145 of the Income-tax Act, 1961, yet proceeded to bifurcate the income into agricultural and business income. The assessee maintained regular books of account audited by qualified chartered accountants, and no adverse comments were made by the auditors. The objections raised by the Assessing Officer, such as cash payments and self-made vouchers, were general and did not justify the rejection of the books of account. Judicial precedents cited by the assessee supported the acceptance of audited accounts unless specific defects were found.

4. Principles of Natural Justice and Procedural Fairness:
The assessee contended that the Assessing Officer made enquiries through the Income-tax Inspector without confronting the assessee with the adverse materials collected. This violated the principles of natural justice, rendering the assessment illegal and null. The law mandates that no materials should be accepted without being tested and that any order passed without following the principles of natural justice is a nullity.

5. Relevance and Application of Judicial Precedents:
The assessee cited several judicial pronouncements to support their case, arguing that the Assessing Officer failed to provide sufficient reasons for rejecting the books of account and estimating income. The Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) dismissed these precedents as factually different without proper consideration. The assessee also highlighted that the firm's transactions with a private limited company managed by relatives of the partners were legitimate business practices and had been accepted in previous years.

Conclusion:
The Tribunal found that the Assessing Officer misdirected himself by adopting a percentage method to segregate business activity from agricultural income without rejecting the books of account or providing sufficient reasons. The assessee's activities, including hybrid seed production, were consistently treated as agricultural operations in previous years. The principles of natural justice were violated as the adverse materials were not confronted with the assessee. The Tribunal set aside the order of the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) and directed the Assessing Officer to accept the return as filed by the assessee, thereby allowing the appeal.

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