Mumbai, Aug 24 (PTI) The central government has appointed former diplomat Syed Akbaruddin, ex-bureaucrat Annie George Mathew, and consultancy BCG India Chairman Janmejaya Kumar Sinha to RBI central board. They have been appointed as part-time, Non-official Directors on the Central Board of Reserve Bank of India for four years with effect from August 24 or until further orders, whichever is earlier, the central bank said in a release on Monday. Last week, the government had re-appointed i... ... ...

Statutory appeals against externment orders must be filed within the prescribed limitation period. A substantial delay, unsupported by a bona fide explanation before either the appellate authority or the High Court, does not justify interference with dismissal as time-barred. Although the High Court may condone delay in an appropriate case, that power depends on a genuine explanation and cannot be used to bypass a statutory limitation regime that does not permit condonation. The time-barred dismissal of the statutory appeal therefore remained undisturbed.

Foreign investment received as share capital, share premium and compulsorily convertible debentures is not taxable as unexplained cash credit where investment agreements, tax-residency certificates, inward-remittance records, audited financial statements and cross-border verification establish the investors' identity, creditworthiness and transaction genuineness, and remain unrebutted. Interest on debentures is allowable where the underlying investment or loan stands accepted and no distinct basis supports disallowance. Employees' provident fund contributions paid after the prescribed statutory due date are not deductible, consistently with Checkmate Services Pvt. Ltd.

Transfer-pricing adjustments require a fair opportunity for proper examination and verification of the taxpayer's transfer-pricing study report before determining the arm's length price. Where the report is furnished shortly before the transfer-pricing order and insufficient time is available for review, fairness requires fresh consideration. The assessment, transfer-pricing and Dispute Resolution Panel orders were set aside, with the matter restored for de novo transfer-pricing adjudication after examination of the study report.

Penalty notices for concealment of income or furnishing inaccurate particulars must specify the exact charge by striking out the inapplicable statutory limb. Retaining both alternatives without clarification fails to give the taxpayer clear notice of the allegation and impairs an effective defence. Such ambiguity vitiates initiation of penalty proceedings. The defect applied to both assessment years, rendering the penalty notices invalid and the penalties unsustainable; the penalties were deleted.

Revisionary jurisdiction cannot be exercised on an incorrect factual premise where the assessment record shows that the Assessing Officer examined and accepted the explanation for cash deposits. The revision relied on a deposit figure inconsistent with departmental bank details, while the assessment had already obtained information, considered the taxpayer's response and made no addition. The alleged inadequate enquiry was therefore factually unsustainable, rendering the revision order without valid jurisdiction and liable to be quashed.

Reassessment based on alleged accommodation-entry information requires the Assessing Officer to independently form a reason to believe that taxable income escaped assessment. Investigation material alone is insufficient where the assessee's explanation and records are not properly examined. Treating a share issue as unsecured loans, despite contrary material, and relying on factual errors undermines the reopening. Where the income forming the recorded basis for reopening is explained or does not survive, another income identified during reassessment cannot be independently assessed. The reassessment is therefore void and consequential additions cannot survive.

Section 153A assessments cannot sustain additions for alleged unexplained construction investment where the search yields no incriminating material. Construction expenditure recorded in balance sheets, with stated funding sources and no admission of undisclosed investment, cannot be treated as unexplained merely on the basis of a post-search departmental valuation report. A valuation report obtained after search is only an estimate of construction cost and does not itself constitute incriminating material. Consequently, additions lacking a nexus to seized material are impermissible under Section 153A, and the relevant assessments were quashed.

Alleged unaccounted credits cannot be sustained solely on third-party diary entries and the statement of an entry operator's son where no substantive independent evidence links the deposits or transactions to the assessee. Names entered in a diary on the deceased operator's oral instructions create, at most, a reasonable probability and do not establish that the assessee deposited funds into the operator's bank accounts. In the absence of corroborative evidence, the addition is unsustainable; deletion of the addition was upheld.

Ex parte reassessment additions for unexplained bank credits, capital receipts from sale of immovable property, and commodity transactions remained unchallenged because no return of income, response to statutory notices, or supporting evidence was furnished. Repeated adjournments did not result in production of material before either the first appellate authority or the Tribunal. Without evidence substantiating the challenges to the additions, no relief was available and the additions were confirmed.

Closing-stock valuation cannot be increased solely because a higher approximate value was declared to a bank where audited books, quantitative records, and the consistently applied cost-or-net-realisable-value method show no defect or discrepancy. Bank declarations do not displace book valuation unless the Revenue identifies unrecorded stock or inaccuracies in the books or stock records. The distinguishable precedent concerned stock omitted from the books. The addition for alleged undervaluation of closing stock was therefore deleted.

Long-term capital gains from shares acquired through an IPO, held in demat form and sold through a recognised stock exchange cannot be treated as unexplained cash credit merely on a general penny-stock investigation report. Documentary proof of subscription by account-payee cheque, demat holding, banking trail, exchange-based sale and securities transaction tax supports genuineness unless rebutted by assessee-specific evidence. The gain remained eligible for exemption and the related addition was deleted. Once the share transactions were accepted as genuine, no basis remained to infer commission paid for arranging a bogus entry; the estimated unexplained expenditure addition was also deleted.

Limited remand proceedings cannot revive an unexplained-investment addition already deleted in an earlier appellate round. The Assessing Officer must remain within the defined remand scope, which concerned determination of actual shareholding using relevant information. Interest expenditure linked to dividend and other income from shareholding is deductible under Section 57 without further verification where that nexus has already been conclusively recognised. Interest under Section 234D is not chargeable where no refund was issued on processing of the return. Interest under Section 220 must be recomputed, if applicable, on total income determined after giving effect to appellate directions.

Interest expenditure connected by a real and proximate nexus to income taxable under "Income from other sources" is deductible under section 57 and cannot be capped merely because the income earned in a particular year is lower. Section 57 does not require expenditure to be incurred solely or exclusively for a particular item of income. Separately, departmental appeals with tax effect below the applicable CBDT monetary threshold are not maintainable unless a recognised exception applies; the policy applies to pending appeals and precludes merits adjudication where no exception is established.

Denial of benefit of new tax regime opted u/s 115BAA - non-filing of Form 10IC u/s 115BBA according to which concessional rate of tax is to be charged HELD THAT: - The assessee's application for condonation of delay was pending before the Principal Commissioner. In light of the Gujarat High Court decision V.M. PROCON PVT. LTD. [2024 (9) TMI 216 - GUJARAT HIGH COURT] and the absence of objection from the Revenue, the Tribunal directed the Principal Commissioner to condone the delay and per... ... ...

Deduction of interest income of co-operative societies u/s 80P(2)(d) - Interest on savings accounts with co-operative banks - Eligibility of a co-operative housing society for deduction of interest earned on savings accounts maintained with co-operative banks - HELD THAT: - Section 80P(2)(d) permits deduction of interest or dividend income derived from investments with another co-operative society. The provision does not confine the expression "investments" to fixed deposits; interest earned on ... ... ...

Electricity tariff increase of 6.83 per cent after four years is presented as necessary in light of inflation and rising costs. Reducing transmission and distribution losses is identified as a means of limiting future tariff increases. Provision of 200 units of free electricity for poor and needy households through solar panels under the Muft Bijli Yojana is treated as distinct from tariff revisions.

Sugar supply is characterised as adequate, and higher prices are attributed principally to speculative buying and advance stockpiling, alongside lower output, seasonal demand and global price pressures rather than an actual shortage. Duty-free raw sugar imports and stockholding limits are intended to augment availability, curb speculative accumulation and stabilise market sentiment. Imports, existing stocks, special crushing and an earlier crushing season are expected to moderate prices and improve festive-period supply. Ethanol diversion is not identified as a cause of the price movement.

Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax audit-report compliance is extended for registered dealers with a principal or additional place of business in specified cyclone-affected or flood-affected districts. Audit reports for the financial year 2022-2023 furnished on or before 31 January 2024 are deemed to have been furnished within the prescribed time limit. The extension is implemented through a further proviso to rule 16-A(1) of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Rules, 2007.

M. HIDAYATULLAH, C.J., A.N. RAY, G.K. MITTER, P. JAGANMOHAN REDDY AND S.M. SIKRI, JJ. For the State of Rajasthan : Niren De, Attorney-General, G.C. Kasliwal, Adv.-General and K.B. Mehta, Adv JUDGMENT M. Hidayatullah, J. 1. We regret our inability to agree that the appellant Mrs. Kanta Kathuria was not holding an office of profit under the Government of Rajasthan when she stood as a candidate for election to the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly from the Kolayat Constituency. 2. Mrs. ... ... ...