2017 (9) TMI 1633
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....subgroup. No surrender of undisclosed income was made in this group. Notice u/s. 153A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred as the Act) was issued on 09.3.2010 and served on the assessee. A return of income filed on 30.3.2010 by the assessee at declaring income of Rs. NIL. Notice u/s. 143(2) and 142(1) of the Act was issued on 20.5.2010. In response to the same, the assessee replied the notices and submitted that the payment towards purchase of a capital asset does not attract provisions of section 40A(3) as is the case of the asseseee and relied upon the case law of ITAT, Delhi Bench in the case of Kanshi Ram Madan La. Vs ITO (1983) 3 ITD 290 (Delhi) wherein it has been held that the provisions of section 40A(3) are not applicable in the case of capital expenditure. Thereafter, the AO held that assessee has violated the provisions of Section 40A(3) of the Act with regard to the payment of Rs. 3 crore in cash. As such a sum of Rs. 60 lacs being 20% of Rs. 3 Crore was disallowed and added to the income of the assessee by completing the assessment on 28.12.2010 on total income of Rs. 60,00,000/- u/s. 143(3) r.w.s. 153A of the Act. 3. Aggrieved by the assessment order dat....
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....at assessee has purchased the land at Village Nangli Umarpur Distt. Gurgaon for a sum of Rs. 3.69 Cr. from the seller parties namely Sh. Pohap Singh, Sh. Chet Singh, Sh. Chandra, Sh. Kishan, Smt. Vidhya, Smt. Jagwati, Smt. Veerwati and Smt. Lali. The purchase of agriculture land is evidenced through sale deed and the payment is also evidenced by way of the sale deed executed before the Sub Registrar. There is no dispute on the fact that the identity of e payee is proved, the genuineness of the transaction is proved and the source payment is also established in as much as such amount is found to be withdrawn from the HDFC bank account of the appellant company. The AO's case is that the provisions of sec. 40A(3) are of mandatory nature whereas the assessee- relying on the decision of the Hon'ble Jurisdictional Rajasthan High Court in the case of Harshee a Chordia vs. CIT supra has contended that when identity of the payee, genuineness of the transaction and source of payment is established then provision of section 40A(3) cannot be applied. The Hon'ble Rajasthan High Court while interpreting the provisions of Sec. 40A(3) in the case of Harshila Chordia vs, ITO supra has clearly h....
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..... The CBDT Circular No. 6P dated 6.7.1968 reiterates this view that "this provision is designed to counter evasion of a tax through claims for expenditure shown to have been incurred in cash with a view to frustrating proper investigation by the department as to the identity of the payee and reasonableness of the payment." 4.4. In this regard, it is pertinent to get into the following decisions on the impugned subject:- Attar Singh Gurmukh Singh vs. ITO reported in (1991) 191 ITR 667 (SC) "Section 40A(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, which provides that expenditure in excess of Rs. 2,500 (Rs.10,000/- after the 1987 amendment) would be allowed to be deducted only if made by a crossed cheque or crossed bank draft (except in specified cases) is not arbitrary and does not amount to a restriction on the fundamental right to carry on business. If read together with Rule 6DD of the Income-tax Rules, 1962, it will be clear that the provisions are not intended to restrict business activities. There is no restriction on the assessee in his trading activities. Section 40A(3) only empowers the Assessing Officer to disallow the deduction claimed as expenditure in respect of which payment is ....
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....for Rs. 78,45,580/- and disallowed @20% thereon Rs. 15,69,116/-. It is also made clear that without the payment being made by beater cheque these goods could not have been procured and it would have hampered the supply of goods within the stipulated time. Therefore, the genuineness of the purchase has been accepted by the ld. CIT(Appeal) which has also not been disputed by the department as it appears from the order so passed by the learned Tribunal. It further appears from the assessment order that neither the Assessing Officer nor the CIT(Appeal) has disbelieved the genuineness of the transaction. There was no dispute that the purchases were genuine." Anupam Tete Services vs ITO in (2014) 43 Taxmann.com 199 (Guj) "Section 40A( 3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, read with rule 6DD of the Income-tax Rules, 1962 - Business disallowance - Cash payment exceeding prescribed limits (Rule 6DD(j)- Assessment year 2006-07 - Assessee was working as an agent of Tata Tele Services Limited for distributing mobile cards and recharge vouchers - Principal company Tata insisted that cheque payment from assessee's co-operative bank would not do, since realization took longer time and such paymen....
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....yapradesh Sales Tax Act , which were intended to check the evasion and avoidance of sales tax were significantly harsh. The court while upholding the constitutional validity negated the existence of a mens rea as a condition necessary for levy of penalty for non-compliance with such technical provisions required held that "in the consequence to follow there must be nexus between the consequence that befall for noncompliance with such provisions intended for preventing the tax evasion with the object of provision before the consequence can be inflicted upon the defaulter." The Supreme Court has opined that the existence of nexus between the tax evasion by the owner of the goods and the failure of C & F agent to furnish information required by the Commissioner is implicit in section 57(2) and the assessing authority concerned has to necessarily record a finding to this effect before levying penalty u/s. 57(2). Though in the instant case, the issue involved is not with regard to the levy of penalty, but the requirement of law to be followed by the assessee was of as technical nature as was in the case of Swastik Roadways (3 SCC 640) and the consequence to fall for failure to observe....
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....ection 40A where a payment or aggregate of payments made to a person in a day, otherwise than by an account payee cheque drawn on a bank or account payee bank draft, exceeds twenty thousand rupees in the cases and circumstances specified hereunder, namely:- *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** *** (k) where the payment is made by any person to his agent who is required to make payment in cash for goods or services on behalf of such person;" The said rule says that if the payment is made by a person to his agent who is required to make payment in cash for goods and services on behalf of such person: Admittedly, Shri.Arnit Dutta is only the agent of Hutchison Essar Ltd and not the assessee as could be seen very clearly from the Associate Distributor Agreement entered into by the assessee which is on records before us and before the lower authorities. Hence the payment made by the assessee to Shri.Arnit Dutta would not fall under the exception clause of Rule 6DD(k). 4.9. We find that one of the grounds raised by the assessee is violation of principles of natural justice on the part of the Learned CIT(A) to enhance the assessment without....