Section 80IB(10) deduction for housing projects can apply without land ownership where control, risk, and statutory conditions are satisfied.

Deduction under Section 80IB(10) was considered available to an undertaking developing and building a housing project even where the assessee was not the landowner and the approval stood in a cooperative society's name, because land ownership is not a separate statutory . The relevant facts were that the assessee bore the land cost, exercised dominant control, developed the project at its own risk, and was not acting merely as a contractor. The project also satisfied the statutory conditions on plot size, built-up area, and completion before the stipulated date; the later building use permission was treated as procedural and not fatal to the claim.

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Issues: Whether deduction under Section 80IB(10) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 was allowable where the assessee was not the landowner and the housing project approval stood in the name of the cooperative society; and whether the project satisfied the statutory conditions relating to completion, plot size and built-up area.

Analysis: The deduction under Section 80IB(10) is available to an undertaking developing and building a housing project, and ownership of the land is not a separate statutory condition. On the facts, the assessee had incurred the land cost, obtained dominant control over the land, developed the project at its own risk and was not acting merely as a contractor. The record also showed that the project area exceeded one acre and that the residential units did not cross the prescribed built-up area limit. As to completion, the building was found to have been completed and put to use before the stipulated date, and the later issuance of building use permission was treated as procedural rather than defeating the deduction.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to deduction under Section 80IB(10); the Revenue's objection was rejected.

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