Appellate Tribunal upholds deduction under section 80IA despite pending appeal

The Appellate Tribunal ITAT Chennai ruled in a case concerning the deduction under section 80IA of the Income Tax Act. The issue was whether a notional loss brought forward could be adjusted for claiming the deduction. The Tribunal upheld the CIT(A)'s decision to allow the deduction based on a judgment of the Jurisdictional High Court, despite a pending appeal before the Apex Court. The Tribunal emphasized that the High Court's judgment was directly applicable and confirmed the CIT(A)'s order, dismissing the Revenue's appeal. The decision was rendered on July 31, 2015, in Chennai.

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Issues:
Deduction u/s 80IA of the Income Tax Act.

Analysis:
The appeal before the Appellate Tribunal ITAT Chennai concerned the deduction u/s 80IA of the Income Tax Act. The only issue for consideration was whether the notional loss brought forward could be adjusted for claiming the deduction u/s 80IA. The Assessing Officer adjusted the notional loss brought forward from the year of commencement, but the assessee contended that it cannot be adjusted for claiming the deduction. The Assessing Officer referred to a judgment of the Madras High Court supporting the assessee's claim but disallowed it due to a pending appeal before the Apex Court. However, the CIT(A) allowed the claim based on the Madras High Court judgment.

Upon hearing both parties, the Tribunal held that the mere pendency of the Special Leave Petition (SLP) before the Apex Court should not prevent following the judgment of the Jurisdictional High Court. It was acknowledged that the Jurisdictional High Court's judgment was directly applicable to the case. Therefore, the Tribunal found no fault in the CIT(A)'s decision to follow the High Court judgment and allow the assessee's claim. Consequently, the Tribunal confirmed the CIT(A)'s order, dismissing the Revenue's appeal.

The Tribunal's decision was pronounced in an open court on July 31, 2015, in Chennai.

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