ITAT Mumbai limits disallowance under section 14A to exempt income. Assessee's appeal allowed.

The ITAT Mumbai ruled in favor of the assessee, directing the assessing officer to restrict the disallowance under section 14A to the extent of exempt income earned by the assessee. The appeal filed by the assessee was allowed, and the order was pronounced on 22.04.2021.

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Issues:
Disallowance under section 14A of the Income Tax Act - Whether the disallowance should be restricted to the amount of exempt income earned by the assessee.

The Appellate Tribunal ITAT Mumbai heard an appeal filed by the assessee against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for the assessment year 2015-16. The assessee had declared a loss of Rs. 28,39,12,436 in the return of income. The Assessing Officer (AO) observed that the assessee had made investments in shares and incurred interest expenditure, along with a suo-moto disallowance under section 14A of the Act. The AO invoked rule 8D(2) of the IT Rules to disallow an amount of Rs. 28,47,860. The Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) agreed with the assessee that the disallowance under section 14A should be restricted to the amount of exempt income earned, which was Rs. 5,26,516. However, since the assessee had already disallowed Rs. 13,85,320, the disallowance was restricted to that amount.

The assessee appealed to the ITAT Mumbai, arguing that the disallowance under section 14A should be restricted to the amount of exempt income earned during the year. The assessee relied on previous decisions to support this argument. The ITAT noted that the assessee had disallowed an amount of Rs. 13,85,320, while the exempt income earned was Rs. 5,26,516. Citing a previous decision, the ITAT held that the disallowance under section 14A should be restricted to the exempt income earned by the assessee. Therefore, the ITAT directed the assessing officer to restrict the disallowance under section 14A to the extent of the exempt income earned by the assessee, allowing the appeal filed by the assessee.

In conclusion, the ITAT Mumbai ruled in favor of the assessee, directing the assessing officer to restrict the disallowance under section 14A to the extent of exempt income earned by the assessee. The appeal filed by the assessee was allowed, and the order was pronounced on 22.04.2021.

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