2012 (11) TMI 232 - AT - Income Tax

Tribunal upholds CIT(A) on G.P. & freight charges, remands suppressed conversion charges.

The tribunal partly allowed the revenue's appeal, upholding the CIT(A)'s decisions on Gross Profit (G.P.) addition and deletion of addition on account of ... G. P. Addition - gross profit of 26.73% in this year as against the gross profit of 30.28% in the immediately preceding assessment year - CIT(A) deleted the addition - Held that:- The gross profit of the assessee in last 5 years was in the range of 25% to 27% with the exception of assessment year 2005-06 where the gross profit was 30.28% followed by a reason on account of order of a particular item which had higher margin and the same was not repeated in the year under consideration. This factual aspect has not been controverted by the revenue by bringing any contrary material on record. Further, during the year under consideration, increase in diesel price and power also contributed to fall in gross profit. The learned CIT(A) has given a finding that the assessee has declared process loss of 10% to 11% consistently - CIT(A) has given a finding that the assessee had maintained day to day stock registers as found during the course of survey proceedings. These factual aspects have also not been controverted by the revenue by bringing any contrary material on record - decided against revenue. Addition on freight and octroi charges - CIT(A) deleted the addition - Held that:- As decided in assessee's own case wherein CIT(A) has distinguished the nature of expenditure with the nature of expenditure which was covered by the agreement with the holding company & the findings given by the CIT(A) that the freight and octroi expenditure claimed by the assessee were incurred on purchase of consumables and stores materials cannot be disturbed - in favour of assessee. Suppressed conversion charges - CIT(A) deleted the addition - Held that:- The issue cannot be decided without complete data as the parties have not furnished the industry-wise loss or the history of the loss for last 4/5 years, the loss incurred during various process, percentage of loss in each process, comparison of such loss in difference processes industrywise and various assessment year-wise & other comparative instances and factors like type of machinery used, claim of manufacturer of machines as to the amount of loss likely to occur when work is done on their machines - restored the matter to the file of the Assessing Officer to affirm the correctness of the assessee’s claim of loss - in favour of revenue for statistical purposes. Issues Involved:1. Deletion of addition on account of Gross Profit (G.P.) Addition.2. Deletion of addition on account of freight and octroi charges.3. Deletion of addition on account of suppressed conversion charges.Detailed Analysis:1. Deletion of addition on account of Gross Profit (G.P.) Addition:The revenue challenged the deletion of an addition of Rs. 59,27,275/- made by the Assessing Officer (AO) on account of G.P. addition. The AO observed a fall in the gross profit rate from 30.28% in the previous year to 26.73% in the current year. The assessee attributed the fall to increased diesel prices and changes in job work items. The AO rejected the books of accounts under section 145(3) of the IT Act, citing the absence of a stock register and abnormal burning loss. The learned CIT(A) deleted the addition, noting that the assessee's operations were job work-based, with raw materials and finished goods owned by the principal company, making stock valuation irrelevant to the assessee's profitability. The tribunal upheld the CIT(A)'s decision, noting that the assessee consistently declared a process loss of 10-11% and maintained necessary stock registers, which were impounded during a survey.2. Deletion of addition on account of freight and octroi charges:The revenue contested the deletion of an addition of Rs. 45,69,801/- related to freight and octroi charges. The AO disallowed these expenses, arguing that the agreement between the assessee and its holding company stipulated that such costs were to be borne by the holding company. The CIT(A) deleted the addition, referencing his decisions in earlier years where similar disallowances were overturned. The tribunal affirmed the CIT(A)'s decision, citing the ITAT's previous rulings for assessment years 2002-03 and 2004-05, which found that the freight and octroi expenses pertained to consumables and stores materials, not raw materials or finished goods.3. Deletion of addition on account of suppressed conversion charges:The revenue appealed against the deletion of an addition of Rs. 1,14,48,255/- for suppressed conversion charges. The AO based this addition on statements from the assessee's employees, which suggested a lower burning loss of 5%, compared to the 10.78% claimed by the assessee. The AO rejected the book results under section 145 of the IT Act and calculated the suppressed conversion charges by considering a 5% burning loss. The CIT(A) deleted the addition, following decisions in the assessee's favor for earlier years. The tribunal restored the matter to the AO for re-examination, aligning with the ITAT's previous directions for assessment years 2002-03 and 2004-05, which required a detailed analysis of industry standards and historical data on process losses.Conclusion:The appeal of the revenue was partly allowed for statistical purposes, with the tribunal upholding the CIT(A)'s decisions on G.P. addition and freight and octroi charges, while remanding the issue of suppressed conversion charges for further examination by the AO.