Gist of latest caselaws

Lease expenses : Where assessee purchased a running hotel business and vendor had to secure lease rights of premises from owner, expenditure incurred towards such tenancy right should be allowable as revenue expenditure - S.M. Dayanand v .Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax (2013) 40 taxmann.com 420 (Karnataka)

 

 

 

Proceedings in pursuance to notice issued under section 158BD giving less than 15 clear days time to assessee to file return for block period would be void ab initio only in a case where prejudice is shown to have been caused to assessee or where notice has not been served at all to assessee.Notice giving less than 15 days time to file block return: Proceedings in pursuance to notice issued under section 158BD giving less than 15 clear days time to assessee to file return for block period would be void ab initio only in a case where prejudice is shown to have been caused to assessee or where notice has not been served at all to assessee - Commissioner of Income-tax v. Joginder Singh (2013) 40 taxmann.com 429 (Punjab & Haryana)

 

 

 

Fees for Technical services : Irrespective of insertion of Explanations 5 & 6, with retro effect from 1-6-1976, where entire services of providing technical design and drawings were rendered by foreign company to Indian assessee outside India, same would not be chargeable to tax in India - New Bombay Park Hotel (P.) Ltd.v.ncome-tax Officer (International Taxation) TDS-4 (2014) 41 taxmann.com 36 (Mumbai - Trib.)

 

 

 

Liaison Office of a foreign company is taxable when such foreign company is registered with ROC - Brown & Sharpe Inc. v. Assistant/Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax (2014) 41 taxmann.com 345 (Delhi - Trib.)

 

 

TDS on ECB : Interest on external commercial borrowings (ECB) loan being exempted by CBDT under section 10(15)(iv)(c), no TDS liability would arise - Deputy Commissioner of Income-taxv.Essar Steel Ltd. (2013) 40 taxmann.com 537 (Mumbai - Trib.)

 

 

Pre-commencement production cost that was shown as capital work-in-progress, could not be denied as revenue expenditure after production started - Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax v.Essar Steel Ltd. (2013) 40 taxmann.com 537 (Mumbai - Trib.)

 

 

DEDUCTION - PROFITS AND GAINS FROM INDUSTRIAL UNDERTAKINGS OTHER THAN INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT UNDERTAKINGS

Housing project : Where assessee engaged in business of construction, adopted project completion method which was one of recognized method of accounting, its claim for deduction under section 80-IB (10) could not be rejected merely on ground that it should have adopted percentage completion method of accounting - Commissioner of Income-tax v. Satadhar Enterprises (2013) 40 taxmann.com 327 (Gujarat) 

 

 

SEARCH AND SEIZURE

Validity of search : Where satisfaction with respect to search and seizure in assessee's case was entirely based on a document which neither bore assessee's name nor was it related to him, issue of warrant and subsequent search and seizure proceedings were liable to be quashed - Rajesh Rajora v. Union of India (2013) 40 taxmann.com 330 (Madhya Pradesh)

 

 

APPELLATE TRIBUNAL - APPEALABLE ORDERS

Condonation of delay : Where competent authority rejected assessee's application for grant of registration under section 12AA in absence of books of account and other details furnished by assessee and against impugned order assessee filed appeal before Tribunal late by 1804 days and sought condonation of delay, since assessee was not only negligent in filing appeal before Tribunal but also in pursuing its application before competent authority, there was no reasonable cause for delay - Hyderabad Urban Development Authority v. Assistant Commissioner of Income-tax (2013) 40 taxmann.com 354 (Hyderabad - Trib.) 

 

 

SERVICE TAX

CARGO HANDLING AGENCY SERVICES

Movement of goods in mining area cannot, prima facie, be regarded as Cargo Handling Services - Aravali Equip (P.) Ltd. v. Commissioner of Central Excise (2013) 40 taxmann.com 4 (New Delhi - CESTAT) 

 

 

PENALTY - NOT TO BE IMPOSED IN CERTAIN CASES

Though errors of omission/commission are clerical errors and they may not be deliberate, but, when they are huge, they must be picked up at time when tax return is signed and submitted; failure in that behalf would attract penalty, as such errors do not constitute 'reasonable excuse' - Powerscreen Equipment Ltd. v. Commissioners of Customs & Excise (2014) 41 taxmann.com 62 (UKV - DUTIES TRIBUNALS) 

 

 Source: Taxmann