TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (7) TMI 1969
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....s for inculcating personal, social and national values amongst the public. 3. The assessee was granted provisional registration under section 12AB of the Income-tax Act on 28.05.2021. Thereafter, it filed applications seeking regular registration under section 12AB and approval under section 80G of the Act. Upon examination of the material placed on record, the learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions) accepted the genuineness of the objects and activities of the assessee and granted registration under section 12AB. However, instead of recognising the assessee as a charitable institution, the registration was granted by categorising it as a "Religious Entity". Consequently, while considering the application under section 80G, the learned CIT(E), particularly in paragraphs 3.2 and 3.3 of the impugned order, observed that the assessee was engaged in religious discourses on the Bhagavad Gita and their broadcasting and telecasting and, therefore, held that the activities were religious in nature. Relying upon Explanation 3 to section 80G(5) and the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in Upper Ganges Sugar Mills Ltd., the learned CIT(E) rejected the application for approv....
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....phical, ethical and motivational treatises available to mankind. Its eighteen chapters expound the principles of Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga, Dhyana Yoga, Sannyasa, renunciation of attachment, selfless action, selfdiscipline, equanimity, righteousness, leadership, moral responsibility and ultimate self-realisation, none of which prescribe any exclusive ritual, ceremony or form of worship. According to the learned AR, the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita transcend religious boundaries and are intended to inculcate universal human values such as honesty, integrity, compassion, self-restraint, devotion to duty and inner peace, which are equally relevant in education, governance, administration, management and everyday life. 7. The learned AR further submitted that there exists a wellrecognised distinction between religion, religious denomination, spiritual philosophy and ethical instruction. Merely because the Bhagavad Gita is predominantly revered by Hindus does not render every discourse based upon its teachings a religious activity. It was contended that the Hon'ble Supreme Court has, in a catena of decisions, recognised Hinduism as a way of life rather than a religion in the narro....
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....erefore, submitted that the learned CIT(E) has erred both in law and on facts in treating the assessee as a religious entity and in rejecting its application under section 80G. It was accordingly prayed that the registration granted under section 12AB be modified by recognising the assessee as a charitable institution and that consequential approval under section 80G be directed to be granted. 10. Per contra, the learned Departmental Representative strongly supported the impugned orders passed by the learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions) and submitted that the learned CIT(E), after conducting a detailed examination of the objects and activities of the assessee, had rightly concluded that the assessee was substantially engaged in activities of a religious nature. Inviting our attention to paragraphs 3.2 and 3.3 of the impugned order passed under section 80G, the learned DR submitted that the learned CIT(E), upon examination of the financial statements, income and expenditure account, ledger accounts and other documents furnished by the assessee, recorded a categorical finding that the assessee was conducting discourses on the Bhagavad Gita and was also engaged in broadc....
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.... old and abandoned cows and organising programmes for inculcation of moral, social and national values amongst the public. Significantly, none of these activities has been disputed by the learned CIT(E), nor has any adverse finding been recorded regarding their genuineness or charitable character. 14. The categorisation of the assessee as a religious entity rests substantially upon one clause contained in the trust deed relating to the maintenance or renovation of temples. However, the assessee, during the course of proceedings before the learned CIT(E), furnished a categorical undertaking dated 26.08.2025, executed by the President of the Trust, affirming that since its inception, no activity relating to renovation or maintenance of temples or religious places had ever been undertaken and further undertaking that no such activity would be carried out in future. The Revenue has not brought any material on record to rebut this categorical assertion. 15. It is a settled principle that the true character of a trust is to be determined from its dominant objects coupled with its actual activities, and not by reference to an isolated clause in the trust deed which has admittedly re....
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....eous conduct and self-realisation. The central theme of the Gita is not ritualistic worship but ethical living, selfless action and moral responsibility. Even the Geeta was source of inspiration during the freedom struggle and Lokpal Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Mahatma Gandhi, Acharya Binova Bhave have written various books on Geeta and referred to Geeta as guiding force for the Freedom Movement. This philosophy is succinctly reflected in the celebrated verse: कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन" (Bhagavad Gita 2.47) which teaches that one's right lies in the discharge of duty and not in attachment to its fruits. Likewise, "तस्मादसक्त: सततं कार्यं कर्म समाचर" (Bhagavad Gita 3.19) emphasizes selfless performance of one's obligations. 19. The philosophy of Sannyasa, as explained in the Bhagavad Gita, has also been misu....
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....n 3 to section 80G(5) but fails to consider the statutory effect of Section 80G(5B), inserted by the Finance Act, 1999 with effect from 01.04.2000. Section 80G(5B), introduced through a non obstante clause, creates a statutory exception by providing that an institution shall not be denied approval merely because it incurs expenditure of a religious nature, provided such expenditure does not exceed five per cent of its total income during the relevant previous year. The provision thus qualifies and limits the rigour of Section 80G(5) in cases where religious expenditure is merely incidental. 23. In the present case, the Revenue has not recorded any finding that the expenditure allegedly incurred on religious activities exceeds the statutory threshold prescribed under section 80G(5B). On the contrary, it has been specifically demonstrated before us that the expenditure on the alleged religious activities is less than five per cent of the total receipts of the assessee, and this factual assertion has remained uncontroverted. Therefore, even assuming, solely for the sake of argument, that dissemination of the Bhagavad Gita constitutes a religious activity-which, in our considered op....