Exemption of slot charter income under Indo-German DTAA affirmed by following comparable Indo-UK precedent; appeal allowed.

Exemption of income from slot chartering was held to fall within Article 8 of the Indo-German DTAA by applying treaty interpretation and comparative analysis with a similar provision in the Indo-UK DTAA. The tribunal allowed the taxpayer s appeal after the decision relied on a prior ruling interpreting the corresponding Indo-UK provision; the appellate authority followed that precedent and treated slot charter receipts as exempt. Revenue conceded the issue was concluded in the taxpayer s favour and acknowledged that no substantial question of law remains.

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Issues:
Challenge to order of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal for Assessment Year 2007-08 regarding exemption under Article 8 of DTAA for income from slot chartering.

Analysis:
The High Court considered an appeal challenging the order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal regarding the exemption of income from slot chartering under Article 8 of the DTAA for the Assessment Year 2007-08. The Revenue raised the question of whether the income of the assessee from slot chartering should be considered as part of the income from operations of ships exempt under Article 8 of the DTAA. The Tribunal's decision was based on a previous judgment of the Court related to a similar provision in the Indo-UK DTAA. The Court noted that the impugned order allowed the appeal of the respondent-assessee by following the decision in a specific case. The Revenue's counsel acknowledged that the issue was settled in favor of the assessee based on the previous decision. Consequently, the Court found that the framed question did not raise any substantial question of law and dismissed the appeal without any costs.

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