Section 80IB(10) deduction for housing projects cannot be denied merely for absence of a completion certificate when completion is otherwise shown.

Section 80IB(10) deduction was held allowable for a housing project approved before the completion-certificate amendment, because the new certificate requirement operated prospectively and could not be used to deny relief where the project was otherwise shown as completed. The prior acceptance of the assessee's claim in earlier years supported the same treatment for the year under review. The municipal law's deeming provision also reinforced that absence of a formal completion certificate was not fatal when refusal was not communicated within the prescribed period. The disallowance was therefore not sustainable.

---

---

Issues: Whether the assessee was entitled to deduction under section 80IB(10) for assessment year 2007-08 despite non-furnishing of the completion certificate, in view of the prior tribunal decision in the assessee's own case and the deeming effect under the municipal law.

Analysis: The housing project had been approved and the earlier years of the assessee's claim had already been accepted by the Tribunal. The amendment introducing the completion-certificate condition operated prospectively, and for projects approved before the relevant amendment the deduction could not be denied merely because the certificate was not furnished when the record showed completion of the project. The municipal law also contemplated deemed permission where the Commissioner did not intimate refusal within the prescribed period, supporting the assessee's case that absence of a formal certificate was not fatal.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to deduction under section 80IB(10), and the disallowance was not sustainable.

---