TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2010 (1) TMI 723
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....r payment, reviewer payment, editor payment, proof reader payment, translator payment, DTP expenses, printing of books (labour charges), paper charges and transportation charges of books". 3. According to DIT(Exe.) the aforesaid activity would not qualify under the 'education' limb of the definition of Charitable purpose in sec.2(15) of the IT Act, in view of the Apex Court decision in 101 ITR 234, it would rather fall under the 'general public utility'. According to DIT(Ex.), the assessee's activity involve in carrying on of an activity in the nature of trade/commerce/business wherein books are sold for consideration which is not a charitable purpose in view of proviso to sec.2(15) of the IT Act which is reproduced as under; "Charitable purpose" includes relief of the poor, education, medical relief, and the advancement of any other object of general public utility: Provided that the advancement of any other object of general public utility shall not be a charitable purpose, if it involves the carrying on of any activity in the nature of trade, commerce, business or any activity of rendering any service in relation to any trade, commerce or business for a cess or f....
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....tion and its income during the relevant years was only from publishing and sale of text books. On appeal to the Supreme Court: Held, reversing the decision of the High Court, that the assessee was entitled to the exemption u/s 10(22). The assessee was a Government company and it was controlled by the State of Assam; the Central Board of Direct Taxes had granted similar exemption by letter dated August 19, 1975 to the Tamil Nadu Text Books Society which performed activities similar to those of the assessee; and the Central Government had by letter dated July 9, 1973 stated that all State controlled Educational Committee/Boards had been constituted to implement the educational policy of the States and consequently they should be treated as educational institutions (matter remanded)". 5. The learned AR drew our attention regarding the activities carried on by the Trust. In this regard, the assessee has placed notes on the activity of the Trust at page-Dl to D-6. According to which the assessee Trust is not for profit Trust that seeks to publish high quality books for children at an affordable cost in multiple Indian Languages. The assessee is trying to create a shift i....
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.... is being reiterated that the books will be purchased only by the School Education Committees and the payment will be made by them at the point of purchase. In every district at a School or another appropriate place, a stall will be put up by you. Detailed directives to each district office have been sent from this office under letter no.5645 dated 29-10-2008 (Annexure B) and a copy has been emailed to you. It has been estimated that a total of 2,02,540/- books will be needed in the whole of Bihar and these will be sold through the stalls put up by you. In the deliberations on 24-10-2008, it was decided that a review meeting will be held a week after melas are started where the future strategy will be decided based on the experiences of the first week. In the light of this it seems necessary that the books are printed in phases. In the first phase printing 50% of the estimated number will be best. You are requested to take necessary action and play an important role to make books available to the children of classes 1 and 2 in the light of the above facts and needs. Yours faithfully, S/d- (Rajesh Bhushan) SPD 7. Attention was also drawn to th....
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....ew expressed in Tribune case to the tent that we think that a trust such as the one considered there does not just like the trust before us, fall within the category of education, as such, mentioned in the statutory elucidation of charity, which was repeated the 1961 Act, with an added qualification of the last and widest category. Although the term 'education', as used in section 2(15) of the Act, seems wider and more comprehensive than education through educational institutions, such as universities, hose income is given an exemption from income-tax separately under section 10(22) provided the educational institution concerned does not exist for "for purposes of profit", yet it seems to me that the educational effects of a newspaper or publishing business are only indirect, problematical, and quite incidental so that, without imposing any condition or qualification upon the nature of information to be disseminated or material to be published, the mere publication of news or views cannot be said to serve a purely or even a predominantly educational purpose in its ordinary and usual sense". 9. In this appeal, the issue was with regards to publication of news or views, but i....