2015 (8) TMI 871 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance u/s 14A r.w.r. 8D - Held that - In the case of ACIT Vs. M.Baskaran(2015 (3) TMI 192 - ITAT CHENNAI) the co-ordinate Bench following various decisions of High Courts deleted the disallowance made under section 14A for the reason that assessee has not earned any exempt income. When there is no claim for exemption of income in such situation section 14A has no application. Admittedly, in this case assessee has not received any exempt income during the assessment year 2010-11, therefore this decision is squarely applicable to the facts of the present case. The co-ordinate Bench while holding that provisions of section 14A have no application, when no exempt income is received in the previous year - Decided in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues:
- Disallowance made under section 14A read with rule 8D of the Income Tax Rules.

Analysis:
The appeal was filed against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals)-II for the assessment year 2010-11. The only issue raised by the appellant was the sustaining of the addition made under section 14A read with rule 8D of the Income Tax Rules. The appellant argued that no dividend income was received, which was claimed as a deduction. Citing a previous Tribunal decision, the appellant contended that section 14A does not apply when no exempt income is earned. The appellant further argued that certain investments should be excluded from the disallowance calculation as they were not yielding tax-free income. The Departmental Representative supported the lower authorities' orders.

The Tribunal analyzed the situation and referred to various court decisions. It noted that if no exempt income is earned, the corresponding expenditure cannot be disallowed under section 14A. The Tribunal cited cases where courts held that in the absence of tax-free income, disallowance under section 14A is not permissible. The Tribunal emphasized the need for a nexus between the expenditure and the exempt income. It highlighted that section 14A cannot be invoked if there is no receipt of exempted income. Relying on precedents, the Tribunal concluded that the disallowance under section 14A was not justified in this case as no exempt income was earned or received.

In another case, the Tribunal dismissed a tax appeal where the Revenue sought to disallow interest expenses related to tax-free profits. The Tribunal found no profit for the relevant assessment year, thus the disallowance did not apply. The Tribunal reiterated that section 14A cannot be invoked in the absence of exempt income. It upheld the decisions of the lower authorities in allowing the deduction of interest liability from other income.

In summary, the Tribunal upheld the appellant's arguments and deleted the disallowance made under section 14A of the Act. The Tribunal's decision was based on the principles that disallowance under section 14A is not applicable when no exempt income is earned or received during the relevant assessment year. The Tribunal followed established court decisions and found no merit in the Revenue's plea to disallow certain expenses. Ultimately, the appeal of the assessee was allowed, and the disallowance under section 14A was deleted.