Condonation of delay in the Revenue's income-tax appeal depends on whether sufficient cause is shown through a bona fide and adequately explained process, rather than on the length of delay alone. Departmental scrutiny, approvals, record collection and preparation of the appeal memorandum may constitute sufficient cause where the explanation is not specifically denied or shown to be non-existent. Handwritten dates in an otherwise standard-form delay application do not by themselves establish that the explanation is stereotyped or unreliable when the application materially accounts for the delay. On these facts, the departmental procedural delay was treated as bona fide, the delay was condoned, and the appeal was directed for admission processing.

Transfer-pricing method selection between the Comparable Uncontrolled Price method and the Transactional Net Margin Method is primarily a fact-based benchmarking issue. The Tribunal's acceptance of TNMM as the most appropriate method was treated as sustainable where it was not perverse or contrary to the record. Mere disagreement over the appropriate method does not create a substantial question of law under section 260A unless the selected method contravenes prescribed rules. Differences between associated-enterprise and non-associated-enterprise transactions were also considered within the benchmarking analysis. The tax appeals were dismissed because the transfer-pricing questions raised no substantial question of law.

Reopening after four years requires fresh tangible material and satisfaction of the proviso to section 147; a reassessment cannot rest on a mere change of opinion. Audit objections led the Assessing Officer to re-examine balance-sheet documents and records already available during the original assessment, without new evidence or information indicating escaped income. The Tribunal quashed the reassessment for lack of jurisdiction. High Court found no substantial question of law, affirming that the Assessing Officer could not reopen the assessment solely through reappraisal of existing material beyond the four-year period.

TDS credit must be considered where tax was actually deducted from a deductee's income or payment but was not remitted by the deductor. The statutory bar on recovering such tax from the deductee operates once actual deduction is established, preventing double recovery while permitting action against the defaulting deductor. Absence of Form 16, Form 16A or Form 26AS is not conclusive where the deductor has failed to deposit or report TDS. Deductees may rely on cogent evidence, including salary slips, bank records, invoices, payment advices, ledgers, correspondence or insolvency claims. Prima facie claims require factual verification rather than mechanical rejection, with related demands kept in abeyance pending determination.

Depreciation is allowable on acquired rights to use a brand name and on an acquired marketing and distribution network where those rights form part of the opening written-down value of the relevant intangible-asset block. Section 32(1)(ii) covers trade marks, licences, franchises and other business or commercial rights of similar nature, a scope broad enough to include these acquired intangible assets. The treatment of goodwill as a comparable business or commercial right supports this interpretation. The depreciation claim was therefore sustained for the relevant assessment year.

Ind AS book entries do not independently determine taxable income, which must be computed under the Act and applicable ICDS. Notional security-deposit amortisation and deferred royalty recognition did not create taxable income where no real accrual occurred or consideration had already been taxed; related additions were deleted. EPCG duty benefits were governed by the statutory actual-cost treatment rather than Ind AS grant presentation, and the addition was deleted. ICDS IX capitalisation differences did not establish double deduction without evidence. Transferable development-right cost, leave provision and gift expenditure required verification or fresh adjudication. Weighted R&D deduction remained available where the facility was approved, despite the prescribed authority not issuing Form 3CL.

Transferable development rights received in exchange for surrendering land and building to a municipal authority have an ascertainable cost of acquisition: the cost attributable to the surrendered property. Their subsequent cash sale is therefore chargeable as capital gains, unlike self-generated development rights arising without transfer of an identified asset. Where a scrutiny notice merely identifies a refund claim for verification and does not specify limited scrutiny, the assessment may extend to the taxability of such rights. Non-taxation of similar receipts in another taxpayer's assessment does not create parity or estoppel against correct application of tax law. Capital gains must be recomputed after allowing the attributable acquisition cost.

Dividend distribution tax on dividends paid to a Netherlands-resident shareholder raises the question whether the lower India-Netherlands DTAA rate overrides the domestic rate under Section 115-O. Although High Court authority supported treaty-rate application, the issue was pending before the Supreme Court, which had advised High Courts to consider stays in matters involving the same controversy. Applying judicial discipline, the Tribunal declined to decide the treaty-rate claim pending Supreme Court adjudication. The appellate order was set aside and remanded for fresh adjudication in line with the Supreme Court's eventual decision.

Jurisdictional objections in reassessment, including a notice issued in the name of a deceased assessee and alleged procedural non-compliance, must be addressed before merits where they could invalidate the reassessment. Section 250(6) requires the appellate authority to identify each point for determination, record its decision and provide reasons; a general reference to the assessment order does not constitute ground-wise reasoned adjudication. The authority's power to set aside a best-judgment assessment does not remove this obligation. Jurisdictional and legal grounds should be decided through a speaking order before additions are examined on merits, which arise only if the reassessment is valid.

Domestic companies with turnover below the prescribed threshold are subject to the 25% corporate tax rate fixed by the Finance Act applicable to the relevant assessment year. An incorrect reference to section 115BA in the return does not justify applying the higher 30% rate where the company otherwise qualifies for the concessional rate. The applicable statutory rate must be applied to returned income, and the benefit is not denied solely because a revised return was not filed.

Faceless reassessment jurisdiction under section 144B, read with CBDT directions extending faceless assessment to reassessments under section 147, permits both NaFAC and the jurisdictional Assessing Officer to conduct such proceedings. A reassessment completed by NaFAC before notification under section 151A remained valid because it was founded on the existing faceless-assessment mandate, the relevant limitation exclusion did not apply, and subsequent validation supported issuance of reassessment notices by officers other than NaFAC. However, where reassessment was completed ex parte and non-participation was attributed to longstanding mental illness, natural justice required a reasonable opportunity to submit evidence. The additions were remanded for fresh appellate adjudication after three effective opportunities.

Section 80P deduction for a milk co-operative is confined to profits from the specified milk-supply business. Interest on an income-tax refund derives from the statutory compensation for excess tax retention, not that business, and is ineligible. Interest from commercial-bank deposits likewise neither arises from the specified business nor qualifies as investment income from another co-operative society. Interest and dividends from investments with co-operative societies may qualify independently of the primary business, subject to entity-wise verification of each investee's co-operative status. Contributions to an approved gratuity fund remain subject to the ordinary annual contribution limit under Rule 103. Interest for delayed TDS deposit is not business expenditure, and a challenge solely to penalty initiation for under-reporting is premature.

Enhanced tax rate under section 115BBE, increased from 30% to 60% by the Taxation Laws (Second Amendment) Act, 2016, applies prospectively from 1 April 2017 where no retrospective operation is expressly provided. For unexplained income falling within section 69A in Financial Year 2016-17, tax is therefore computed at the pre-amendment rate, subject to applicable surcharge and cess. Cash deposited subsequently may be telescoped against cash surrendered during survey only after verifying that the surrendered cash and available cash balance existed on the deposit date and had not been used in the interim. No separate addition survives to the verified extent of such source availability.

Commodity-trading receivables written off as bad debts qualify for deduction where they were previously included in income and written off in the books; a possible future recovery does not justify disallowance. Characterising the transactions as speculative or the amount as capital investment does not displace fulfilment of those conditions. The bad-debt disallowance was deleted, subject to taxation of any later recovery in the year received. For windmill-profit deductions, head-office expenses and depreciation on common assets require factual examination of their components, use and allocation to eligible operations. That computation was remanded for fresh adjudication.

Tax deduction on foreign-leg Leave Travel Concession reimbursement was not treated as automatically enforceable against an employer where a binding interim judicial direction operated. Deductor liability requires examination of whether beneficiary employees were assessed and discharged their tax liability. Compliance with an interim direction placing eventual tax liability on employees cannot retrospectively create employer default after later determination of taxability. Consequently, demands for non-deduction and interest were deleted. The related penalty failed because it depended solely on the employer being treated as an assessee in default.

Rejection of liquor-trade book results is justified where proper books, stock registers, sale bills and supporting vouchers are not maintained, and declared profit is materially below comparable industry margins. Profit from liquor trading may then be estimated at 3% of stock put to use. Advertisement-display receipts earned for permitting liquor-product displays in business premises constitute business receipts and may be separately added where they were excluded from turnover used for profit estimation. The rejection of books, profit estimation and separate addition of advertisement-display receipts were sustained, and the appeal was dismissed.

Penalty notices under section 270A must specify whether the proposed charge is under-reporting of income or misreporting under a particular statutory limb. Notices that omit the precise charge fail to communicate the basis of penalty proceedings and are contrary to law. Applying this requirement, the Tribunal quashed the penalty proceedings for both assessment years and deleted the penalties because the notices did not identify the applicable charge.

Section 48 requires capital gains to be computed using the consideration actually received or accruing, unless an applicable deeming provision permits substitution with fair market value. Redemption proceeds from non-cumulative preference shares therefore cannot be replaced by the price of equity shares in the same company, because the share classes carry different rights and no additional consideration was established. The provision for unquoted-share transfers and the rule for unascertainable consideration do not apply where redemption consideration is ascertainable. A claim for enhanced acquisition cost following capital reduction and consolidation requires factual verification of acquisition records, share identity, legal effect and cost allocation; it cannot be raised as a pure legal ground without an existing factual record.

Section 56(2)(viib) does not apply where shares are issued as non-cash consideration for acquiring a business undertaking, because no money is received; the share-premium addition was deleted. Bad-debt deductions were allowed where receivables had been taxed earlier and were written off, including student-fee receivables supported by detailed records. Section 14A disallowance was deleted in the absence of exempt income. Reversal of advance or unearned fees did not attract sections 41(1) or 28(iv) where no earlier deduction or benefit arose, and acknowledged creditor liabilities were not treated as ceased. Loan processing charges were allowable as interest-related business expenditure. TDS-related relief depended on the payee offering income to tax; other disallowances were sustained, restricted, or remanded according to the applicable rules and evidence of liability crystallisation.

Transfer pricing tolerance rules govern software development and online advertisement support services where the tested party's margins or transaction prices fall within the prescribed range. Foreign exchange gains or losses linked to export invoices may be operating items for IT-enabled services, subject to verification and corresponding treatment in comparable-company margins. Income from sale of SEIS scrips is non-operating because it arises from an incentive scheme rather than service exports, requiring parity adjustments for comparables. Comparable selection requires final search criteria and detailed FAR analysis: companies with negligible IT-enabled services activity may be excluded, while additional or previously selected comparables may be reconsidered. Comparable-margin computations require verification and correct application.