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TMI Blog2017 (3) TMI 900X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... circumstance of the case and in law, the Tribunal was right in upholding imposition of penalty under Section 271(1)(c) of the Act on a finding that the appellant had concealed its income and/or furnished inaccurate particulars of its income in respect of the apportionment of foreign exchange fluctuation loss between the Tonnage Income and Non Tonnage Income while filing the return of income for A. Y. 2007-08.?" 3 The appellant-assessee is engaged in shipping business. The appellant-assessee is assessed to tax under Chapter XIIG of the Act to the extent its income is earned from vessels, satisfying/ qualifying the requirements thereof (tonnage income). So far as the income from other vessels i.e. non-qualifying vessels (non-tonnage income ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r, order dated 30th June, 2010, was passed by the Assessing Officer, imposing a penalty under Section 271(1)(c) of the Act, wherein it specifically records the fact that though there were no transaction in foreign currency resulting in foreign exchange loss, in case of non-tonnage income, yet the appellant-assessee had debited exchange loss to its non-tonnage business only to reduce its non-tonnage income being offered to tax. Therefore, by an order dated 30th June, 2010, the Assessing Officer imposed a penalty of Rs. 3.09 lakhs being 100% tax sought to be evaded by debiting foreign exchange loss of Rs. 9.37 lakhs to determine its non-tonnage income. 6 Being aggrieved, the appellant-assessee carried the above issue of penalty in appeal to ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f does not release the assessee from penal consequences. 8 The grievance of the appellant-assessee before us is that it had itself brought its mistake of debiting the loss on account of foreign exchange fluctuation to determine its Non-tonnage income to the notice of the Assessing Officer. This, according to him, is stated in its Affidavit dated 23rd June, 2010 filed during the penalty proceedings before the Assessing Officer. However, the above affidavit as filed by the appellant during penal proceedings, has been ignored by all the authorities including the Tribunal while passing the impugned order. It is submitted that the above fact itself would justify dropping of any penal proceedings against appellant-assessee. It was also submitted ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that " The Assessing Officer, in our view, shall not be carried away by the plea of the Assessee like "voluntary disclosure", "buy peace", "avoid litigation" "amicable settlement" etc. to explain its conduct." The Apex Court has also further observed that " It is trite law that the voluntary disclosure does not release appellant-assessee from the mischief of penal proceedings. The law does not provide that when an assessee makes a voluntary disclosure of his concealed income, he had to be absolved from penalty." In the peculiar fact of the present case, the socalled voluntary disclosure was only after the Assessing Officer initiated proceedings under Section 142 of the Act. Thus, it was not a voluntary disclosure. In fact, the Assessment O ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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