Discounting of deferred sale consideration was impermissible after the contractual due date, with transfer-fee retention refundable.

Apparent consideration under section 269UA(b) permits discounting only when deferred payment falls after the agreement and the value is treated as discounted as on the agreement date. Where the departmental payment under Chapter XX-C was made after the contractual due date, the transferor could not be subjected to discounting and the authority could not reduce the consideration on that basis. The retained sum towards transfer fees was also accepted as refundable, leaving refund and interest on that amount as the operative consequence.

---

---

Issues: Whether the competent authority was entitled to reduce the apparent consideration by applying the discounting principle to the deferred portion of the sale price where the departmental payment under Chapter XX-C was made after the contractual due date; and whether the retained sum towards transfer fees was liable to be refunded.

Analysis: The definition of apparent consideration under section 269UA(b) contemplates discounting only where consideration is payable on dates falling after the agreement and the value payable after such date is to be treated as discounted value as on the date of the agreement. The Court held that discounting operates as a rebate for earlier payment and, on the facts, the Department's payment was made after the date stipulated in the agreement. In such a situation, the transferor could not be subjected to discounting, and the authority could not compute the payable amount by reducing the consideration on that basis. The respondents also accepted the petitioner's challenge to the retention of Rs. 5,00,000 towards transfer fees, leaving only the question of refund and interest.

Conclusion: The application of discounting was held impermissible on the facts, and the petitioner was entitled to the balance consideration without such reduction, together with refund of the retained transfer-fee amount and applicable interest.

---