ITAT Delhi Upholds Assessee's Section 80IAB Deduction Claim, Consistency with Prior Decisions

The Appellate Tribunal ITAT DELHI upheld the Commissioner (Appeals) decision in favor of the assessee regarding the deduction claimed under section 80IAB of the Income Tax Act for the assessment year 2013-14. The Tribunal relied on consistency with previous Tribunal decisions in the assessee's favor for other assessment years. The appeal was dismissed, affirming the allowance of the deduction and the order was pronounced on 29th July 2022.

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Issues:
1. Deduction claimed under section 80IAB of the Income Tax Act.
2. Disallowance of deduction by the Assessing Officer.
3. Appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) and decision in favor of the assessee.
4. Consistency of the issue with previous Tribunal decisions.

Analysis:

The appeal before the Appellate Tribunal ITAT DELHI concerned the deduction claimed by the assessee under section 80IAB of the Income Tax Act for the assessment year 2013-14. The Assessing Officer disallowed the deduction on the grounds that the sale of bare shell and cold shell to the co-developer was not permitted under the SEZ Act, hence the consideration received was not eligible for deduction under section 80IAB. Additionally, a reduction of Rs. 6,57,66,000 was proposed due to the non-allocation of establishment and other expenses to the SEZ activity.

The Commissioner (Appeals) allowed the deduction in full, relying on the precedent set in the assessee's own case for the assessment year 2009-10. During the Tribunal proceedings, it was acknowledged by both parties that the issue was in favor of the assessee based on previous Tribunal decisions for assessment years 2008-09 and 2011-12. The Tribunal upheld the Commissioner (Appeals) decision, citing consistency with the earlier Tribunal rulings in the assessee's favor.

The Tribunal's decision was based on the principle of following the consistent view expressed in the assessee's previous cases, where the issue was decided in favor of the assessee. The Tribunal dismissed the raised ground, thereby upholding the decision of the Commissioner (Appeals). Consequently, the appeal was dismissed, and the order was pronounced in open court on 29th July 2022.

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