2014 (6) TMI 561 - AT - Income Tax

Valuation of stock - Deletion of Excise duty/modvat credit Invocation of section 145A of the Act Held that - When the assessee is following exclusive method of accounting for the valuation of purchase and sale of goods as well as inventory, the further adjustment is required to be made to include the amount of excise duty in such valuation as per the provisions of section 145A of the Act assessee has submitted that detailed working was filed by the assessee before the CIT(A) to show that the adjustments required to be made as per the provisions of section 145A of the Act are revenue neutral having no effect on the final profit of the assessee and after taking into consideration the working, the CIT(A) deleted the addition made by the AO by invoking the provisions of section 145A of the Act - revenue contended that working furnished by the assessee before the CIT(A) for the first time in support of its claim by the assessee has been relied upon by the CIT(A) to give relief to the assessee without giving an opportunity to AO to verify the same - there is also nothing in the order of CIT(A) to show that the working has been verified by him thus, the matter is required to be remitted back to the AO for verification of the working furnishing by the assessee before the CIT(A) to show that the adjustments required to be made u/s 145A of the Act are revenue neutral having no effect on its final profit Decided in favour of Assessee.

Summary

Issues:
- Valuation of closing stock under section 145A of the Income Tax Act, 1961
- Treatment of excise duty and modvat credit in accounting

Valuation of Closing Stock under Section 145A:
The appeal was filed by the Revenue against the order of the ld. CIT(A)-27, Mumbai, where the addition made by the AO on account of excise duty/modvat credit was deleted. The AO had enhanced the value of closing stock of the assessee due to a difference between modvat credit claimed and expenses claimed for excise duty. The AO disallowed the expenditure on excise duty, considering it a double deduction due to the exclusive method of accounting followed by the assessee. The ld. CIT(A) found merit in the assessee's submissions, stating that adjustments under section 145A would be revenue neutral, leading to the deletion of the addition. The Tribunal agreed that adjustments under section 145A were necessary when following an exclusive method of accounting. However, the issue was remanded to the AO to verify the working submitted by the assessee before the ld. CIT(A) to ensure the adjustments were indeed revenue neutral.

Treatment of Excise Duty and Modvat Credit in Accounting:
The AO had made additions to the total income of the assessee based on discrepancies in excise duty and modvat credit claimed. The AO disallowed the excise duty expenditure and enhanced the value of closing stock. The ld. CIT(A) accepted the assessee's contention that the adjustments were revenue neutral and deleted the addition. The Tribunal acknowledged the requirement of adjustments under section 145A for excise duty in exclusive method accounting. The issue was remanded to the AO for verification of the working submitted by the assessee. The appeal of the Revenue was treated as allowed for statistical purposes.

In conclusion, the judgment primarily dealt with the valuation of closing stock under section 145A of the Income Tax Act, 1961, and the treatment of excise duty and modvat credit in accounting. The Tribunal emphasized the necessity of adjustments under section 145A when following an exclusive method of accounting and remanded the issue to the AO for verification. The decision highlighted the importance of ensuring the adjustments were indeed revenue neutral before making additions to the total income of the assessee.