2014 (5) TMI 702 - HC - Income Tax

Rejection of books of accounts Inflation of price - Held that - The findings of fact recorded by the authorities below did not call for any interference as they were based on appreciation of evidence on record - The assessee has milled almost equal paddy in comparison to previous year, sales have increased by 29% but manufacturing expenses have increased by 45.93% - the increase in the figures of sales is partly due to opening stock at ₹ 92,94,527/- for which no manufacturing expenses have been incurred as there is no paddy in the opening stock - Had there been no sales out of opening stock, the increase in sales would have been even lower - It shows that either the assessee has inflated the expenses or depressed the sales - The cases relied upon by the assessee cannot be followed as they were based on individual fact situation involved and the Court in view of the findings of fact no substantial question of law arises for consideration Decided against assessee.

Issues:
1. Rejection of books of account based on decline in gross profit rate
2. Addition on account of low yield of rice
3. Addition on account of paddy milled outside books of account
4. Findings recorded by authorities below being contrary to evidence available on record

Issue 1: Rejection of books of account based on decline in gross profit rate

The appellant appealed under Section 260A of the Income Tax Act against the order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal rejecting the books of account for the assessment year 2007-08. The Assessing Officer rejected the books of account citing a decline in gross profit rate from the previous year. The Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) partly allowed the appeal but upheld the rejection of books of account. The Tribunal concurred with the CIT (A) and dismissed the appeal. The primary contention was whether the rejection of books of account was justified. The comparison of financial results between the years showed discrepancies in paddy consumption, yield percentage, milling figures, sales, and manufacturing expenses, indicating possible inflation of expenses or depression of sales. The rejection was upheld due to deficiencies and discrepancies in the maintained books of account.

Issue 2: Addition on account of low yield of rice

The appellant contested the addition made on account of low yield of rice without comparable data and disapproval of previous year's results. The Tribunal upheld the addition based on discrepancies in reported yield percentage, transfer of rice superfine, underreported paddy milling, undervalued sales of husk, and closing stock of bardana. The rejection of the appellant's arguments regarding low gross profit was based on the lack of convincing evidence, especially regarding the payment made to farmers as a bonus, which was considered a part of the purchase price.

Issue 3: Addition on account of paddy milled outside books of account

The authorities made additions on account of paddy milled outside the books of account by using the yield of the by-product as a benchmark, despite supplies made to government agencies not disapproving the yield. The rejection of books of account was supported by deficiencies such as underreported yield of rice, transfer of rice superfine, underreported paddy milling, undervalued sales of husk, and undervalued closing stock of bardana. The rejection was deemed justified based on these discrepancies.

Issue 4: Findings recorded by authorities below being contrary to evidence available on record

The appellant argued that the findings recorded by the authorities below were perverse and contrary to the evidence on record. However, the Court found no merit in the petition. The judgments cited by the appellant were deemed irrelevant as they were based on specific fact situations and did not apply to the current case. The appeal was dismissed as no substantial question of law was found, and it was deemed devoid of merit.

This detailed analysis of the judgment highlights the issues of rejection of books of account, additions based on low yield of rice and paddy milled outside books of account, and the contention regarding findings recorded by the authorities below. The judgment provides a comprehensive examination of the facts, legal arguments, and conclusions reached by the Court in addressing each issue raised by the appellant.

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