2013 (3) TMI 372

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....that the approval granted by the Director of STPI was sufficient approval so as to satisfy the conditions relating to approvals under section 10A of the Act?    (B) Whether the Tribunal erred in law in concluding that the software expenses incurred by the assessee was revenue in nature?    (C) Whether Tribunal failed to appreciate that as regards the software it was a case of a sale of copyrighted article and hence the expenditure could not be treated as revenue in nature? 2. Insofar as proposed questions B and C are concerned, the learned counsel for the respondent-assessee points out that the issues are covered by the decision of this Court in CIT Vs. GE Capital Services Ltd. (2008) 300 ITR 420 (Del.).The lear....

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....ee of the business of any such undertakings as is referred to in section 33B, in the circumstances and within the period specified in that section;    (iii) it is not formed by the transfer to a new business of machinery or plant previously used for any purpose. From section 10A(2)(i)(b) it is apparent that one of the conditions is that the respondent-assessee should have started manufacture or production of articles or things or computer software in any electronic hardware technology park or as the case may be a software technology park if the said manufacture commenced after 1.4.1994. The expression "Software Technology Park" has been defined in clause (vii) of Explanation 2 of section 10A as: -    "software t....

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.... authorities.    6. The matter has been examined in consultation with the officers of the Department of Information Technology (earlier, Department of Electronics). In view of the ambiguity in the legal status of the approval by Director of STPs, the Inter-Ministerial Standing Committee will meet to consider the approvals by Director of STPs issued in the past. Therefore, with a view to avoid infructuous demand raised in assessment and reassessment of assessees claiming deduction under section 10A, it has been decided that the claim of deduction under section 10A, shall not be denied to STP units only on the ground that the approval/registration to such units has been granted by the Directors of Software Technology Parks. Howev....

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....authority of Inter Ministerial Standing Committee (IMSC). The IMSC has periodically reviewed the various approvals granted by the STPI Directors in accordance with the Govt. of India guidelines/notifications. All the current approvals granted by the STPI Directors are therefore, deemed to be valid." The above communication makes it clear that the approvals issued by the Directors of the Software Technology Parks of India have the authority of the Inter-Ministerial Standing Committee and that all approvals granted by the STPI Directors are therefore deemed to be valid. The position is also clear from a letter dated 6.5.2009 issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes to the Joint Secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry wherein a dist....