Capital gains exemption for residential property extendable when purchaser funds joint acquisition, subject to beneficial ownership and proportional claims.
Where an assessee wholly funds the acquisition of a residential house purchased in joint names, factual indicators of payment and expense liability establish effective ownership so that the capital gains exemption under Section 54F applies to the total consideration paid; if both spouses contribute, exemption and related deductions are apportioned according to the extent of each spouse's contribution. (AI Summary)

Retrospective tax amendment expands India's taxable reach over offshore share transfers, raising investor certainty and FDI concerns.
Retrospective amendments expand the Income-tax Act by (i) treating rights in relation to Indian companies as capital asset, (ii) broadening transfer to include indirect and cross-border dispositions, and (iii) deeming offshore shares to be situated in India where their value substantially derives from Indian assets, while reinforcing universal withholding obligations; the changes are retrospective, lack clarity on the timing and meaning of "substantial value," and have raised concerns about investor certainty and FDI impact. (AI Summary)

General Anti-Avoidance Rule introduced to counter aggressive tax avoidance and expand reporting, TCS and TDS obligations.
Budget revises individual tax slabs and exemptions while retaining education cesses; grants senior citizens relief from advance tax where no business income exists; inserts a deduction for savings bank interest and allows limited preventive health check deductions within existing health insurance limits. It introduces expanded investment linked and weighted deductions for specified infrastructure, agricultural and manufacturing expenditures, extends sectoral incentives and depreciation for power projects, raises turnover thresholds for SME audit and presumptive schemes, and offers capital gain exemption for reinvestment into manufacturing SMEs. (AI Summary)