TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2016 (2) TMI 569
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....s like to conduct Play House, Primary Schools, Secondary Schools, Higher Secondary Schools, Colleges, Technical Educational School, Agricultural and industrial school, Library, Stitching Classes, Or to give finance/loan to any organization , Or to give Scholarships to the students Studying in any such school, colleges, or to run hostels, Kenya Chhatralayas, Or to help institutes running such activities, or to help poor students in any manner. (2) Trust will start hostel, girl's school, religious temple, etc. Trust will also provide financial assistant to other similar organizations. (3) The students who are taking education in Gujarat state will be provided with scholarships or financial assistant. (4) The above said activities shall not be made for the purpose of earning profit." 3. The assessee applied for section 80G registration before the CIT(E) on 09-10-2014. It was required to file all necessary details as per law. The CIT(E) found its objects inter alia providing for puja of bhagwan, carrying out religious discourses and bhajans, regular satsang and looking after and maintenance of haveli (mandir) to be of purely religious nature. He took n....
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.... relevant previous year ending on 31-03-2015 as per law. 6. Now, we come to the main issue as to whether the assessee can be held to be a religious trust not entitled for 80G registration or not. We have already summarized arguments of both the parties. We deem it appropriate to come to relevant provision i.e. 80G(5) up to explanation 5 to 80G(5D). Section 80G(5)(III) envisages that the impugned registration is not to be granted in case the institution or fund in question is expressed to be for the benefit of any particular religious community or caste. We observe that the same takes care of Revenue's argument that once the assessee is registered for religious trust it is not entitled for the registration in question. We are of the opinion that not only it has to be proved the trust to be of religious in nature but also it must be expressed to be for the benefit of a particular religious community or caste. We come to assessee's objects and find that there is no such religious community or caste expressed therein. Therefore, this clause (iii) to section 80G(5) is not expressly applicable in the instant case. The Revenue at this stage draws our attention to assessee's....
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....stituted as a public charitable trust or is registered under the Societies Registration Act, 1860 (21 of 1860), or under any law corresponding to that Act in force in any part of India or under section 253 of the Companies Act, 1956 (1 of 1956), or is a University established by law, or is any other educational institution recognised by the Government or by a University established by law, or affiliated to any University established by law, or is an institution financed wholly or in part by the Government or a local authority; and (vi) in relation to donations made after the 31 st day of March, 1992, the institution or fund is for the time being approved by the Commissioner in accordance with the rules made in this behalf: Provided that any approval shall have effect for such assessment year or years, not exceeding five assessment years, as may be specified in the approval." 6. From the perusal of the aforesaid section, it is apparent that section 80G of the Act provides for deduction in respect of the donations made by the tax payers to certain trust or institution. These trusts or institutions have to comply with the condition as laid down u/s. 80G(5)(i....
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....ion that the trust is expressed for the religious object and has applied the fund for the purpose other than charitable as contemplated in Explanation 3 to section 80G(5) in contravention of section 80G(5)(ii) of the Income-tax Act. The Explanation 3 to this section lays down that charitable purpose does not include any purpose the whole or substantially whole of which is of a religious nature. The main objection of the CIT is that the objects as enumerated in the trust deed are religious and the expenditure has been incurred for religious purposes. He has also noted that a trust or institution is permitted to incur an expenditure not exceeding to 5% of his total income in the previous year for religious purpose so that it may not contravene the condition No. (ii), as stipulated u/s. 80G(5) of the Act. 8. We have gone through the relevant clauses which have been regarded to be religious in nature by the CIT(A). The object clause of the trust reads as under: "Worship of Lord Shiva, Hanumanji, Goddess Durga and maintaining of temple. To celebrate festivals like Shivratri, Hanuman Jayanti, Ganesh Utasav, Makar Sankranti, renovation and maintenance of temple. To make ....
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....ent, support or propagation of a religion and its tenants, it could be said that a trust has violated the condition No. (iii) of section 80G(5). The objects as has been pointed out by CIT, nowhere talks of advancement, support or propagation of a particular religion,, worshipping of Lord Shiva, Hanumanji, Goddess Durga and maintaining of temple, in our opinion, cannot be regarded for the advancement support or propagation of a particular religion. No evidence or material was placed on record or brought before us by the learned DR which may prove that these object relate to a particular religion. No doubt the DR argued that it relate to Hindu Religion but in our opinion it is not so. Lord Shiva, Hanumanji, Goddess Durga does not represent any particular religion, they are merely regarded to be the super power of the universe. 11. In the case of Commissioner of Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Madras v. Sri Lakshmindra Thirtha Swamiar 1954 SCJ 335, Religion has been expressed to mean a matter of faith with individuals or communities and it is not necessarily theristic. There are well known religions in India, like Buddhism and Jainism, which do not believe in God or....
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....objects as per Explanation 3 must be wholly or substantially whole of which must be of religious nature. The assessee has submitted all the evidence including the objects and how the expenditure has been incurred by it. The onus, in our opinion, gets shifted on the Revenue to prove that the assessee-trust is wholly or substantially for the religious purpose. There is no allegation on the part of the revenue that the whole or substantially whole of the object of the trust is to propagate or advance support to a particular sect. We may observe that Hinduism is a way of life of a civilized society. It as such is not a religion. In this regard we rely on the case of T.T. Kuppuswamy Chettiar v. State of Tamil Nadu [1987] 100 LW 1031 in which it was held "The word "Hindu" has not been defined in any of the texts nor in judgment made law. The word was given by British administrators to inhabitants of India, who were not Christians, Muslims, Parsis or Jews. The alleged Hindu religion consists of four castes Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas and Sudras belonging ultimately to two schools of law, mitaksharas and dayabhaga. There is, however, no religion by the name 'Hindu'. It only show....