Revenue can impose VAT penalty and complete assessment simultaneously on wilful non-disclosure of tu

CST & VAT : Where Assessing Authority issued on assessee composite pre assessment notice proposing assessment under section 25(1) of Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003 and levy of penalty under section 25(3) for prescribed assessment years and further he completed assessments of assessee and simultaneously imposed penalty upon him, since there was no bar against proposing or finalising imposition of penalty simultaneously with completion of assessment, Assessing Authority was justified in imposing

Chief Commissioner is debarred from reviewing order of reviewing Committee ordering non-filing of ap

Service Tax : Unanimous review order of review committee deciding not to file appeal cannot be further reviewed by Chief Commissioner/Board

Gymkhana Club providing sports and other recreational facilities only to its members can’t be treate

IT: Where assessee-club had been involved in providing sports activities accompanied by facilities like liquor bar, playing cards, restaurant, marriage hall, catering services etc. limited to a certain group of persons, i.e., members of club, activities of assessee-club did not fall in definition of charitable purpose as defined under section 2(15)

Prior to March 1, 2008, Cenvat credit could be used to pay ST on GTA services under reverse charge

Cenvat Credit : Since amendment excluding goods transport agency's services from scope of output service was brought effective from 1-3-2008, hence, for period prior thereto, service tax on goods transport agency's services under reverse charge could be paid using Cenvat credit

Non-investment of monies as per methods provided in prospectus doesn't amount to misstatement, rules

CL : Non-investment of monies in manner stated in prospectus does not amounts to violation of statement or mis-statement as issuance of statement and abiding by promises are two different activities; proceedings against petitioner director for mis-statement was to be quashed

Cos with huge turnover, abnormal profits or functional differences are excludible from comparables l

IT/ILT : Where TPO made certain adjustment to assessee's ALP in respect of rendering BPO services to its AE, in view of fact that some of comparables selected by TPO were inappropriate on account of functional difference, turnover, abnormal profit margin etc., impugned adjustment was to be set aside and matter was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

Income from sale of Convertible Debentures under exit option with min assured return isn’t interest

IT/ILT : Gains from sale of CCDs in Joint Venture Company by foreign partner to Indian partner under exit option not "interest" u/s 2(28A) but "capital gains" even if the exit option assures a minimum assured return. Whether a Compulsorily Convertible Debenture is a loan simplicitor or whether it is in the nature of equity, is not material in determining whether the gain on the sale of the debentures by its holder is a capital gain or not. This depends entirely on whether the debentures are capi

Price charged for pre-paid vouchers is inclusive of ST for valuation purposes in absence of breakup

Service Tax : In case of prepaid vouchers sold physically or electronically, price of such vouchers would include processing charges or administration fee and price of talk time or activation charges and in absence of any breakup, entire price should be deemed as gross value inclusive of Service Tax

Sec. 68 additions upheld as assessee failed to produce any evidence to substantiate its loan transac

IT : Where assessee had not brought any evidence on record to substantiate its claim, addition under section 68 was justified

Duty deemed to paid under protest even if assessee had objected to levy through letter to department

Excise & Customs : Where assessee has denied levy on duty on certain charges by way of letters to department but has paid duty under insistence of department, said payment of duty is 'duty paid under protest'

Misplaced Form 15-I deemed as TDS default, unless it is replaced by a duplicate Form 15-I

IT : Depreciation be allowed where in light of fire incident which had gutted branch offices of assessee, assessee had not been able to produce documents in support of purchase of assets but assessee had been able to show from records that expenditure was incurred for fixing of assets

HC upheld reassessment as evidence found during search indicated suppression of transactions by asse

CST & VAT : Where Assessing Authority completed original assessment of assessee for assessment year 2004-05 on basis that assessee had effected sales in total sum of Rs. 54,114 and purchases of Rs. 1.22 lakhs and subsequently Additional Commissioner while granting approval for reopening of above assessment recorded that during search conducted in premises of one 'P' electronic records maintained by 'P' indicated that assessee had engaged in transactions of sales and purchase with 'P' to extent o

Deemed dividend to be taxed in the hands of registered shareholder and not in hands of beneficiary f

IT: Deemed dividend is to be taxed in hands of shareholder, whose name is entered in register of shareholder and, not in hands of beneficiary firm

Payment to foreign co. to conduct navigation studies at Indian port doesn’t satisfy ‘make available’

IT/ILT : Payment made by assessee to foreign company for navigation studies at Indian port to determine pre-existing conditions could not as ascribed as fee for technical services as per article 13 of Indo UK DTAA

No denial of ST exemption in composite contract merely due to non-furnishing of sales bills to subst

Service Tax : For service tax exemption, sale of goods may be evidenced by documents other than sale invoices; such as, (a) contract, (b) Running Account Bills, (c) returns filed with Sales Tax Authorities or (d) other documents

HC grants sec. 54F relief on construction of new house after demolishing of old one

IT : Where assessee sold a property and within three years from sale completed new construction on a plot earlier purchased after demolishing existing structure thereon, assessee was entitled to exemption under section 54F

Court can’t examine minute details during winding-up proceedings to find out reasonableness of dispu

CL : In a winding up petition a Company Court, cannot go into minute details and find out whether monetary value of dispute is grossly disproportionate to admitted liability

Packing and storage of products won’t be deemed as manufacturing activity for purposes of sec. 10B b

IT : Where assessee, engaged in business of manufacturing and exporting of food items, claimed benefit of section 10B, in view of fact that snacks were manufactured by suppliers and assessee merely took a follow-up action for packing and storing products, it would not partake character of 'manufacturing' activity and, thus, assessee's claim was to be rejected

Process undertaken on imported chassis in compliance with Motor Vehicle Rules amounted to manufactur

Excise & Customs : Process undertaken on imported chassis so as to comply with Motor Vehicle Rules and so as to finished touch/marketability is incidental or ancillary process under section 2(f)(i) of Central Excise Act, 1944

Revisionary order of CIT set aside as AO had correctly made sec. 14A disallowance in compliance with

IT : When there was no material on record showing that interest paid by assessee was attributable to funds borrowed for investment in material funds which yielded exempt income, impugned disallowance made in terms of clause (ii) of sub-rule (2) of Rule 8D deserved to be deleted

Revenue couldn’t demand ST from builder if ST collected from buyers was paid by contractor

Service Tax : Where Service tax collected by builders from buyers is deposited with Revenue by contractor being job worker for builders, revenue cannot be allowed to receive service tax again in respect of same construction activities from buyer by taking resort to section 73A

HC dismissed writ as alternate remedy was available to challenge issue regarding validity of reasses

IT: Issue as to whether notice for reassessment was issued within period of limitation could be raised in appeal; writ was not required

HC kept garnishee order against assessee’s client in abeyance as it was only source of earning of as

CST & VAT: Where assessee, a Government of India undertaking, had entered into an agreement with Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) for supply of equipment and materials and for rendering services and Assessing Officer completed assessments of assessee and raised tax demand upon it and in meantime Deputy Commissioner issued a garnishee order under section 46 of Jharkhand Value Added Tax Act, 2005 directing DVC to pay certain amount in Government Treasury against tax due from assessee, since assess

Hero Moto Corp didn't abuse its dominance by revoking dealership due to induction of new partners by

Competition Act: Where new partners were inducted into dealer-firm without manufacturer's approval and manufacturer cancelled old agreement and entered into such an agreement with a firm newly constituted with original partners of old firm, no competitive issue arose

ITAT directs afresh TP study as comparables selected by assessee and TPO weren’t appropriate for ITE

IT/ILT : Where TPO made certain addition to assessee's ALP in respect of rendering IT enabled services to its Associated Enterprises (AEs), in view of fact that some of comparables were improperly included or excluded by assessee as well as TPO on account of related party transactions, turnover filter, volume of business, functional difference and apportionment of operating expenses, etc., impugned adjustment was to be set aside and, matter was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

Pre-deposit couldn’t be held as invalid if it was ordered by ITAT after considering merits of the ca

Service Tax : Where prima facie merits of demand including invocation of extended period have been considered by Tribunal in deciding pre-deposit, said pre-deposit cannot be termed as invalid

Repayment of bank loan by guarantor on default of its JV Co. wasn’t allowable to it as revenue exp.

IT: Where assessee furnished guarantees to different banks against extension of credit facilities to its JV company, in view of fact that JV did not perform well and said guarantee came to devolve on assessee which was settled at a discount by way of one time settlement (OTS) entered into with creditors, amount so paid under OTS could not be allowed as business expenditure or business loss

CESTAT upheld penalty as assessee had wilfully made mis-declaration of value and quantity of goods t

Excise & Customs : Penalty was to be levied, when an exporter deliberately made mis-declaration in respect of value and quantity of goods in an attempt to export

An assessee is entitled to interest on tax refund even if it arises after adjustment of MAT credit

IT: An assessee is eligible for interest on refund arising out of MAT credit

Income accrues on completion of services; ITAT accepts Completion Contract Method for revenue recogn

IT : Where work related to installation and erection of equipment had been completed in subsequent years, accrual of income happened only in subsequent years when assessee gets an enforceable right to receive same even if in accounts assessee had shown it as income and TDS had been claimed by him

Assessee can’t ask for copy of all docs relied upon by revenue without specifying list of docs requi

Service Tax : Assessee may demand copy of documents in possession of Department, which are relied upon by revenue; general request for supplying all documents in possession of department cannot be acceded to

Royalty payments allowed in earlier years couldn’t be doubted by TPO in later years without any chan

IT/ILT : Where for earlier assessment years, payment of royalty to AE was being claimed and allowed as business expenditure of assessee, in absence of any new facts, for relevant assessment year TPO erred in law for determining Arm's Length Price (ALP) of royalty payment to AEs of assessee at NIL

Small concrete block liable to VAT at 4% as it falls under Entry No. 18(5) of Third Schedule of Kera

CST & VAT : Where assessee was engaged in manufacture of small concrete block which was used in between steel structure and shutter to enable steel structure to be few inches above shutter level so that if different blocks were placed in different places it would maintain a uniform level for steel to be placed within concrete slab, said product would fall under Entry No. 18(5) of Third Schedule of Kerala Value Added Tax Act, 2003 and taxable at rate of 4 per cent

No reassessment by AO to disallow provision of exchange difference on repayment of loan on change of

IT: Reassessment beyond four years to tax exchange difference on Foreign Currency loan was unjustified in view of fact that required revelation for exchange difference on said loans were already mentioned in balance-sheet of assessee

No abuse of dominance by opposite party as it was not a dominant player in real estate market for re

Competition Law : TDI though a reputed player in real estate market for retail outlets is not a dominant player in terms of number of projects and gross leviable area

Appeal once rejected by Committee on Dispute couldn’t be admitted even if Committee was declared non

IT : Appeals of revenue which was not permitted by COD when it was functional, cannot be filed later on when COD is declared non-functional

No suspension of CHA license after 3 years of import if it was not based on report of investigating

Excise & Customs : Suspension of CHA license based on recommendation against CHA by authority (other than investigating authority) made after 3 years from import was belated and was vitiated, as it was not based on report of investigating authority

No sec. 69A additions if jewellery found in search was within permissible limit as stipulated by CBD

IT : Where jewellery found in possession of assessee's family was personal wearing of ladies and same was within permissible limit stipulated by CBDT Circular, no addition was to be made

Department can’t demand ST from GTA service provider if its services falls under reverse charge

Service Tax : If assessee is providing GTA services falling under reverse charge, prima facie, no demand can be raised from him

‘Javed Akhtar’ got 50% deduction for getting replaced his Society’s lift benefitting his professiona

IT : Where assessee had incurred expenditure on replacement of new lift to remove hardship and inconvenience to his professional work as well as family life due to frequent breakdown of old lift, 50 per cent of total expenditure which was for professional purpose would be allowed as revenue expenditure

No invocation of extended period if Cenvat credit was availed of by reflecting it in statutory recor

Cenvat Credit : Where credit is availed by reflecting same in statutory records, no mala fide can be attributed to assessee and extended period of limitation is not invocable

Appellant must make disclosure under SAST even if trading is suspended or no loss is suffered by inv

SEBI : Under SAST Regulations, 1997 as also under SAST Regulations, 2011 disclosures are liable to be made within specified days irrespective of scrip being traded on exchange or not

Discount to NR on export order won’t be hit by rigours of withholding tax provisions

IT/ILT : Where Assessing Officer disallowed certain amount of bonus allegedly paid by assessee to a foreign party without deducting tax at source, in view of fact that said amount was infact trade discount and, moreover, assessee had brought on record certain additional evidence in support of its claim, impugned disallowance was to be deleted and, matter was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

Service of Mineral water at restaurants is liable to 10% VAT under Bombay Sales Tax Act

CST & VAT : Where assessee was running several restaurants having permit rooms which served Indian Made Foreign Liquor as well as non-alcoholic drinks, mineral water served to customers at restaurants would fall under Entry No. 14 of Part II of Schedule C of Bombay Sale Tax Act, 1959 and was liable to tax at 10 per cent

No extension of time-limit for assessment in case of any finding or direction of ITAT without hearin

IT : When as a result of a finding or direction in an appellate order, income of one person is held to be income of another person, assessment of such another person can be eligible for relaxation from time barring provisions only if such other person was given an opportunity of being heard before said order (i.e., appellate order) was passed

Principle of unjust enrichment is applicable on ad-hoc deposit of excise duty during pendency of dis

Excise & Customs : Payment being 'Ad hoc deposit towards Union Excise duties pending disputes' or 'Differential duty paid under protest' are payment of 'duty' and are not 'security deposit' and, therefore, refund thereof attracts principle of unjust enrichment

HC denies sec. 10(23C) relief as repair exp. was paid merely to siphoned away the trust’s money

IT : Where assessee trust raised a claim for exemption under section 10(23C), in view of fact that assessee had paid certain amount as repairs which ultimately landed in hands of father of Chartered Accountant of trust who was totally unconnected with repairs work, Assessing Officer rightly inferred that money had been siphoned away from trust and thus its claim for exemption was to be rejected

Delay in filing appeal to be condoned if non-condonation would lead to denial of benefit of retro-ex

Service Tax : Where assessee, being government department, had been granted retrospective exemption vide ad hoc exemption order, delay in filing appeal by assessee must be condoned as non-condonation would render exemption a nullity

RBI extends applicability of existing all-in-cost ceiling of ECBs till Dec. 31, 2014

FEMA/ILT : External Commercial Borrowing (ECB) Policy — Review of All-in-Cost Ceiling

Rental payments for accommodation of land-owners weren’t a part of consideration in Joint developmen

IT : Where on date of agreement complete consideration was not paid by developer to assessee, date on which actual possession of land was given to developer would be considered as date of transfer

No VAT penalty if assessee had included entry tax in sale price of car without any wilful intention

CST & VAT: Where Assessing Authority revised assessment orders of assessee and levied penalty upon it under section 16(2) of Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 on plea that at time of sale of car assessee had prepared invoice and included entry tax paid on purchase value of car into price for purpose of charging sales tax, there was no suppression of turnover by assessee with a wilful intention and, therefore, levy of penalty was not justified

Writ not maintainable against pre-deposit order as it can be challenged in statutory appeal

Service Tax : Writ petition is not maintainable against pre-deposit order; said order can be challenged in statutory appeal

CIT had rightly exercised his revisionary powers when AO had made assessment without any examination

IT: Where there was non-application of mind while considering assessment under section 143(3) and procedure adopted would have implication on tax computation which ultimately caused prejudice to revenue, matter was remanded to Assessing Officer for fresh consideration

HC rejected winding-up of co. as it had proved its ability to pay debt

Company law: Where respondent company had sufficiently demonstrated that it was not incapable of paying its debts and it had made part payments even during course of this proceeding and submitted a schedule for further payments, respondent company was to be permitted to identify and enable sale of apartment in favour of a third party to discharge its dues to bank as well as petitioner company; winding up petition was to be closed

CBDT releases clarification on taxation of Alternate Investment funds

IT : Section 164 of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 - Charge of Tax Where Share of Beneficiaries Unknown - Clarification on Taxation of Alternative Investment Funds Having Status of Non-Charitable Trusts under Income-Tax Act, 1961

HC allows exchange difference loss on refund of customer’s advance relying upon ITAT’s order for pri

IT : Deduction on account of loss being exchange difference on refund of customer's advance relying upon Tribunal's order for prior assessment year of same assessee, to be allowed

Filing of ARE-1 is mandatory to avail of export rebate; non-compliance thereof would lead to denial

Excise & Customs : Procedure of filing of ARE-I, which is foundation in respect of verification of commodity sought to be exported and its exportability, etc., is mandatory and not directory/condonable and non-compliance therewith would lead to denial/rejection of rebate claims

CBDT notifies new tax audit Form with additional reporting requirements

IT/ILT/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Income-Tax (Seventh Amendment) Rules, 2014 - Substitution of Form Nos. 3CA, 3CB and 3CD

No penalty for filing Tax Audit Report in Form 3CB due to completion of Statutory Audit after due da

IT : Where assessee furnished form 3CB alongwith return of income, there was sufficient compliance of provisions of section 44AB and merely because audit report was not furnished in form 3CA could not be a ground to impose penalty under section 271B

Classification of property by City Planning Commission couldn’t be altered by Tribunal for UK VAT pu

Service Tax : Tribunal does not have authority to deal with assessee's grievance with city planning authority/commission; hence, where planning permission opined that assessee's property was not a dwelling, same could not be regarded as dwelling for taxation purposes as well

Exp. incurred by Transport Corporations on repair of buses was revenue exp. under sec. 37(1), rules

IT : Where assessee, engaged in providing transport facilities to public, incurred certain routine expenditure to keep buses fit and roadworthy without obtaining any enduring benefit, its claim for deduction of said expenditure was to be allowed

No denial of Cenvat credit merely on basis of shortage of input found during internal stock taking b

Cenvat Credit : Shortage found in internal stock-taking conducted by assessee themselves for purposes of reconciliation of their entire stock cannot be made basis for denial of credit, without showing that input were not received or were cleared clandestinely

Compat stayed CCIs order levying penalty on small scale industry as it was facing financial crisis

Competition Law : Where appellant small scale industries were facing financial calamity because of order of CCI imposing penalty for entering into anti-competitive agreements, order of CCI was to be stayed in so far as it pertained to penalty aspect

Co. indicted for money laundering activities couldn’t be selected as a comparable for TP study, says

IT/ILT : Where TPO did not include advances while computing adjustment towards working capital, since trade practice of advances and subsequent adjustment of these advances against invoices raised, in case of assessee being captive service provider, had a bearing on profit margin, matter needed reconsideration

Department can’t initiate recovery proceedings during pendency of stay application before commission

Excise & Customs : Where stay application is still pending before Commissioner (Appeals), recovery proceedings against assessee is to be kept stayed during such pendency

Tribunal had to stay penalty proceeding during pendency of appeal

IT : Tribunal under section 254 has power to grant stay of penalty proceedings as incidental or ancillary to its appellate jurisdiction, provided Tribunal is satisfied that entire purpose of appeal would be frustrated or rendered nugatory by allowing such proceedings to continue during pendency of appeal

No sec. 4A valuation as tobacco sold in packs with weights upto 10 gms was exempt from affixation of

Excise & Customs : Where 'spit tobacco' is sold in packs showing weight up to 10 gms, then, as per rule 34 of Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 1977, product is exempt from affixation of MRP and, therefore, section 4A of Central Excise Act, 1944 does not apply for valuation thereof

No addition for unexplained investment on basis of unsigned MOU recovered during survey for purchase

IT : No addition could be made on account of unexplained investment if MOU for purchase of land as well as receipt given by seller found during survey were unsigned documents and transaction had not materialized

Department to provide chance of hearing to assessee before rejecting its request seeking clarificati

CST & VAT : Where assessee made an application under section 48A of Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006 seeking clarification on a product and Competent Authority rejected application without affording opportunity to assessee, before rejecting application, assessee should be given opportunity of personal hearing

Sums payable on purchase of raw materials couldn’t be included in undisclosed income during block as

IT : In block assessment, amount payable for purchase should not be included in undisclosed income

Department can’t hold ST demand in abeyance until service provider recovers ST dues from service rec

Service Tax : Merely because there are dues from service recipient, service tax liability of assessee (service provider) cannot be kept in abeyance till service recipient pays to assessee

Madhya Pradesh Govt. amends VAT Rules; revises return forms for dealers opting for composition schem

CST & VAT/INDIAN ACT & RULES : Madhya Pradesh Value Added Tax Amendment Rules, 2014 – Amendment in Rules 8, 9, 21, 22, 23, 23A, 53A, 84A, Form 4B, Form 9, Form 10B and Substitution of Form 5 & 10

Govt. notifies 'Rashtriya Seva Samithi' under Sec. 35AC and specifies maximum deduction available to

IT : Section 35AC, Read with Explanation (b) Thereto, of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 - Eligible Projects or Schemes, Expenditure on - Notified Eligible Projects or Schemes – Rashtriya Seva Samithi, Andhra Pradesh

Beneficiaries of discretionary trust won’t be liable to tax if income of trust is taxed at maximum m

IT : Where income from trust had already been assessed in hands of trustees at maximum marginal rate, beneficial share could not be assessed in hands of beneficiary again

Company Court can’t order sale of assets of sick Co. on recommendations of BIFR

SICA : Power of High Court to order or cause to effect sale of assets of sick industrial company pending its winding up decision, on receipt of recommendation of BIFR, could not be sustained in law

Manufactures should pay duty on consignment basis through PLA on its failure to pay duty on due date

Excise & Customs : In case of default of payment of duty on due date, manufacturer has to clear goods by making payment of duty on consignment basis through PLA

Trust won’t be hit by proviso to sec. 2(15) if it preserves Indian arts and provides opportunities t

IT : Where assessee was collecting, exhibiting and displaying historical and contemporary Indian arts, architecture, craft and textiles and was also involved in preserving old arts, handicrafts and textiles, and gave employments to poor artisan by providing a platform to indigent village artisans to show their skills to general public, assessee's activities were for promotion and preservation of artistic interest in nature of relief to poor and preservation of objects of artistic interest

Department could demand security from VAT dealer if it was managed by a director of another defaulti

CST & VAT : Where department has raised demand for security based on fears that assessee would descend into non-compliance, as assessee was being managed by a director of defaulting company, said demand of security was valid and assessee's plea of hardship and jeopardy to his business is irrelevant

Transportation cost and taxes to be considered to compute market value of goods transferred under se

IT : In order to determine market value of goods for purpose of Explanation to section 80-I(8), incidental expenses such as transportation, octroi and local taxes are to be included to value of cost of goods sold

Commissioner had no powers to issue clarification on definition of capital goods under Tamil Nadu VA

CST & VAT: Where Commissioner issued a clarification to effect that since cranes were neither vehicles nor machinery, they could not be termed as capital goods falling under definition of capital goods under section 2(11), Commissioner had no powers to issue a circular or clarification under Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006

Assessee claiming ST refund via exemption notification is bound to comply with time-limit specified

Service Tax : An assessee claiming exemption/refund of tax paid on services used for export goods under Notification No. 41/2007-ST is bound by time-limit specified in said notification; he cannot claim benefit of general time-limit under section 11B of the Central Excise Act, 1944

SC: Attorney holder of complainant can initiate appeal and depose in proceedings under Negotiable In

Negotiable Instruments Act : Power of attorney holder may be allowed to file, appear and depose for purpose of issue of process for offence punishable under section 138 of NI Act

No withholding tax liability on payment of export commission to NR before withdrawal of Circular No.

IT/ILT : Where CBDT Circular No. 786 dated 7-2-2000 was in force at time of remittance of amount of commission to non-resident agent, assessee was not liable to deduct tax at source on such payment

HC stays recovery proceedings against ‘Jet Airways’ during pendency of stay application

Excise & Customs : Where there is no delay/inaction on part of assessee and application for stay is still pending, recovery proceedings must be stayed/kept in abeyance during pendency of stay application

Sum received on termination of agency’s term is a capital receipt as it puts an end to income earnin

IT : Where Assessee entered into an agreement with a German company in India for producing and selling products of said foreign Company in India for a specific period and after expiry of period of agreement, foreign company made gratuitous payment to assessee for issuing a NOC for setting up its subsidiary company in India, said amount being capital receipt in hands of assessee, could not be brought to tax

No ST on sale of flat even if advance was received by builder prior to completion of construction

Service Tax : When construction is for sale of flats and same are ultimately sold to customer, there is no service involved even if a part of consideration is received in advance; such advance is against sale consideration of flat and not for obtaining any service

MCA gives discretion to Cos to maintain records in electronic form

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Management and Administration) Second Amendment Rules, 2014 – Amendment in rules 9, 13, 23 and 27

CIT can’t revise order of AO because he loses his jurisdiction due to a circular issued by CBDT subs

IT : Income tax Officer having valid jurisdiction at time of issuance of notice under section 143(2), subsequent disqualification would not scrap his jurisdiction of making assessment

Adjudication proceedings decided by Tribunal couldn’t be re-agitated in collateral proceedings

Excise & Customs : Where demand has been confirmed and upheld finally by Tribunal without further appeal, assessee cannot re-challenge show-cause notice and original order when department initiates recovery

Specified Public Cos engaged in multiple businesses can appoint an individual as its chairperson-cum

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 203 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Appointment of Key Managerial Personnel – Notified class of companies for purposes of second proviso to section 203(1)

MCA tweaks definition of "related party" to eliminate its disharmonious interpretation

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Removal of Difficulties) Sixth Order, 2014 – Amendment in section 2 of the Companies Act, 2013

RBI asks authorized dealers to exercise due diligence and to adhere to KYC norms on sale of Prepaid

FEMA/ILT : Issue of Prepaid Forex Cards- Due Diligence and Adherence to KYC norms

Assessment of amalgamating Co. after its amalgamation with successor Co. is null and void

IT : Where assessee had already amalgamated with another company before finalisation of assessment, no assessment could be framed on assessee as it was not in existence when such assessment was framed

HC allowed assessee to furnish personal bond instead of bank guarantee in respect of unpaid disputed

CST & VAT : Where against order of assessment, assessee filed appeal before Appellate Deputy Commissioner along with stay petition and Appellate Deputy Commissioner directed assessee to pay 25 per cent of disputed amount of tax and imposed a further condition directing assessee to produce bank guarantee with respect to balance amount of tax, assessee was permitted to execute personal bond instead of bank gurantee

I-T Act recognizes Mutual fund as a special category of investment; it can’t be clubbed with investm

IT: Units of mutual being a special category investments, investment in mutual funds cannot be clubbed with investment in shares or commodities; and any surplus arising therefrom on sale of mutual fund kept as investment is long-term capital gain

HC discharged Liquidator on his failure to advertise winding-up petition of creditor on satisfaction

CL : Where petitioning creditor did not advertise winding up petition on satisfaction of its dues and it was not feasible to substitute another creditor in place of petitioning creditor for want of satisfaction of twin requirement of Rule 101 of Company (Court) Rules, official liquidator was to be discharged

Job work of making ‘Barbie Dolls’ out of parts received from client deemed as manufacture; not taxab

Service Tax : Activity of : (a) receiving parts of 'Barbie Dolls', 'Hot Wheel Kits', etc. from clients, (b) assembling them; and (c) clearing them in form of 'Barbie Dolls', 'Hot Wheel Kits' prima facie amounts to manufacture and not liable to service tax under Business Auxiliary Services

HC upheld revisional proceedings as exp. was allowed by AO without scrutiny of material available wi

IT: Where entire material available with department was not considered by Assessing Officer and certain expenditure was allowed in excess, it could not be said that revision order of Commissioner was a substitution to that of opinion of Assessing Officer

SetCom could reject settlement application after recording reasons even when assessee had co-operate

Excise & Customs : Settlement Commission can reject application at any stage, if it finds that full and true disclosure is not made, even after commission has allowed application to be proceeded with

ITAT upheld concealment penalty on MAT Co. as additions to its income led to increase in its book pr

IT : Where assessee, engaged in scientific research activities, consistently followed practice of Capitalising amount received during trial run period which was duly disclosed in its balance sheet, AO could not pass a penalty order under section 271(1)(c) taking a view that said amount being result of assessee's regular business activity, was liable to be added to its taxable income

TP additions on basis of comparables with differential functions, turnover and brand value are not j

IT/ILT : Where TPO made certain addition to assessee's ALP in respect of rendering software development services to its AE, in view of fact that some of comparables selected by TPO were improper on account of functional difference, turnover, brand value, etc, impugned addition was to be set aside and, matter was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

GTA services are eligible for credit only upto factory gate if excise duty isn’t computed on transac

Cenvat Credit : Definition of 'place of removal' under section 4(3)(c) of Excise Act would apply for Cenvat Credit purposes only if duty is payable with reference to transaction value; in any other case 'place of removal' would be 'factory gate' and credit of transport services would be available only up to said place of removal

Single Judge can order investigation into affairs of Co. while sanctioning amalgamation scheme

CL : Single Judge while sanctioning scheme of amalgamation is competent to issue direction under section 237(a)(ii) and then it is for Central Govt. to decide which authority would investigate

Department couldn’t impose ST demand on sub-contractor when full ST was paid by Principal advertisin

Service Tax : Where service tax on full consideration stands paid by principal advertising agency, no demand can be confirmed on other agencies working under it in view of Circular No. F. No. 341/43/96-TRU, dated 31-10-1996

Assessee can ask for cross-examination of witnesses relied upon by department without stating any re

Excise & Customs : Once certain reports or statements are relied upon by department, it is fundamental that author of report and persons from whom such statements are allegedly recorded should be made available for cross-examination; it is part of principle of natural justice which cannot be denied

SEBI clarifies position limits of domestic institutional investors for currency derivatives contract

SEBI : Clarification on position limits of domestic institutional investors for currency derivatives contracts

HC rejects condonation plea of assessee as he failed to substantiate grounds for filing belated appe

Service Tax : Where assessee's ground for seeking condonation of delay was unsubstantiated, delay could not be condoned

AO can’t make sec. 14A disallowance by invoking Rule 8D without recording his satisfaction

IT : Where Assessing Officer did not record any satisfaction as required by section 14A(2), disallowance under section 14A invoking rule 8D was unjustified

Passing remarks by Tribunal while deleting penalty won’t negate invocation of extended limitation pe

Excise & Customs : Where Tribunal found that assessee, a manufacturer of dutiable and exempted goods, did not comply with Cenvat rule 6 with an intent to evade duty and confirmed demand invoking extended period, such demand does not become invalid even if Tribunal has deleted penalty observing 'there was no intent to evade'

Sec. 44AE benefit not available if assessee owned more than 10 goods carriages even if one of them w

IT : Where assessee owns more than ten goods carriages at any point of time during previous year, even though one vehicle of assessee was under repair and assessee in fact had operated only ten goods carriages, he is not entitled to benefit of section 44AE

HC directs appointment of expert to find out a feasible payout method for disbursement of investor’s

SEBI : Where a committee was appointed to manage affairs of company and to make sure that sale of assets of company were to ensure that depositors be refunded their amounts, expert was to be appointed to assist committee in its task to evolve a feasible practicable method for disbursement of various amounts to depositors and investors

Order of SetCom can be subjected to writ jurisdiction of HC only when there is fault in decision mak

IT : High Court, under Article 226, can interfere/review an order passed by Settlement Commission under section 245D only if there is fault in decision making process, and not with decision itself

ST penalty can be waived off on existence of a reasonable cause even when extended limitation period

Service Tax : Since circumstances set out in section 73(1) for invocation of extended period are similar to those set out in section 78 for imposition of a penalty and since section 80 overrides section 78, section 80 would apply even if extended period of limitation is held invocable

Reassessment quashed as reasons recorded by AO didn’t indicate failure of assessee to disclose mater

IT : Where Assessing Officer having completed assessment under section 143(3), initiated reassessment proceedings after expiry of four years from end of relevant assessment year, in view of that in reasons recorded there was not even a whisper to effect that income had escaped assessment on account of any failure on part of assessee to disclose fully and truly all material facts necessary for its assessment, impugned reassessment proceeding deserved to be quashed.

Tool kits and first aid kits supplied along with two-wheelers were eligible for input credit

Cenvat Credit : For motor vehicle, tool kit and first aid kit has to be part of vehicle before same can be put to use; therefore, tool kits and first aid kits supplied along with two-wheelers are eligible for credit as input

HC couldn’t stay criminal proceedings against Co. and its director after sanctioning scheme of arran

CL : Where scheme of arrangement was sanctioned by High Court, application filed for stay on complaints against company and its directors for failure to pay amount due as stipulated in scheme was liable to be dismissed as section 391(6) does not empower court to grant stay on criminal proceedings after sanctioning of scheme

ITAT adopts LIBOR rate as benchmark for international transaction of lending of sums to AEs

IT/ILT: LIBOR being inter-bank rate fixed for international transaction has to be adopted as arm's length rate in case of lending of money in foreign currency to AE

MCA prescribes transitional period for resolutions passed under Companies Act, 1956

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 465 of The Companies Act, 2013 - Repeal of Certain Enactments and Savings – Clarification On Transitional Period for Resolutions Passed Under Companies Act, 1956

SC: Department must supply to assessee all docs relied upon by it before confirming demand

Excise & Customs : Adjudicating authority must follow principles of natural justice and supply to assessee all documents on which it proposes to place reliance

SC: Sahara can sell hotel properties overseas to raise money; Subrata Roy would continue to remain i

SEBI : Supreme Court allows three offshore hotel properties owned by Saharas to be transferred, sold or encumbered subject to condition that entire sale consideration received by Saharas after repayment of loan outstanding towards Bank of China is deposited with SEBI towards compliance with directions contained in conditional bail order dated 26-3-2014 passed by Court

AO couldn’t levy penalty by taxing trial run receipts on incomplete projects as they were capital re

IT : Where assessee, engaged in scientific research activities, consistently followed practice of Capitalising amount received during trial run period which was duly disclosed in its balance sheet, AO could not pass a penalty order under section 271(1)(c) taking a view that said amount being result of assessee's regular business activity, was liable to be added to its taxable income

ITAT upheld concealment penalty on MAT Co. as additions to its income led to increase in its book pr

IT : Where assessee, engaged in scientific research activities, consistently followed practice of Capitalising amount received during trial run period which was duly disclosed in its balance sheet, AO could not pass a penalty order under section 271(1)(c) taking a view that said amount being result of assessee's regular business activity, was liable to be added to its taxable income

Construction of residential units was liable to ST even if they were further transferred without con

Service Tax : When residential unit is transferred to another person, residential unit may not be considered to be for personal use even if such transfer is done without any consideration and, therefore, construction of houses for society transferring such houses without consideration to homeless fishermen is liable to service-tax

Agricultural land to be deemed as capital asset after its conversion into a non-agricultural land

IT : Where requisite approval for converting agricultural land into non-agricultural land was taken, said land no more remained agricultural land

Writ dismissed as assessee had filed writ without availing of opportunity of being heard provided by

CST & VAT : Where Assessing Officer issued on assessee notices for revision of assessments and assessee without availing opportunity given to it by filing objections to impugned notices filed writ petition, approach of assessee in rushing to High Court challenging notices simpliciter without even filing objections before Assessing Officer could not be sustained

No sec. 36(1)(iii) disallowance if interest wasn’t charged on advances when recovery of principal wa

IT : Where assessee had not charged any interest on amount advanced as amount was recovered only by filing a civil suit and with assistance of influential people, charging of interest on notional basis by Assessing Officer was not justified

If revenue intends to change classification of goods, onus is on it to prove otherwise

Excise & Customs : Where issue is in respect of classification of goods, onus is on revenue to show that goods are classifiable differently than that claimed by assessee

RBI enhances investment limit of Govt. securities by USD 5 billion for FIIs/QFIs/FPIs

FEMA/ILT : Foreign investment in India by SEBI registered Long term investors in Government dated Securities

Sums paid by purchaser of land towards income-tax dues of seller couldn’t be treated as income of pu

IT : Where assessee paid part of sale proceeds of disputed land to owner and balance to IT Department as instructed for recovery of tax dues of land owner, and whole amount was shown as liability in books, said sum could not be added to assessee's income

Winding-up plea to be dismissed if Co. pays overdue sum and raise dispute on claim of interest

CL : Winding up petition against company was to be dismissed when it paid principal due amount during pendency of winding up proceedings and had disputed petitioner's claim of interest

Courses run by flying training institutes and aircraft maintenance institutes are exempt from servic

Service Tax - Training and coaching in field of flying of aircraft for obtaining Commercial Pilot License from Director General Civil Aviation and training for obtaining Basic Aircraft Maintenance Engineering Licence are exempt, as they are qualifications recognized by law

No penalty on MAT Co. if it was liable to pay same amount of taxes even after addition of concealed

IT : Simply because before and after additions, assessee remained a MAT company and paid tax under section 115JB, that by itself does not mean that no penalty could be imposed

No denial of Cenvat credit merely on technical grounds if necessary ingredients for its availment we

Cenvat Credit : Technicalities cannot stand in way of Cenvat Credit, if necessary ingredients required for availing same under prescribed forms are otherwise available

NTPC could make downward revisions of provisional sales when final tariff of electricity was determi

IT: Where assessee electricity generating company had to carry on billing in terms of instruction of Regulatory authority CERC, till approval of tariffs and it was subject to adjustment after final tariff determination, reduction of sales was to be allowed

No unjust enrichment if assessee got refund of duty paid under protest in pursuance of SCN of earlie

Excise & Customs : Where assessee has paid duty under protest in pursuance of a show-cause notice for clearances already made during prior period and later, on winning case, applies for refund thereof, principle of unjust enrichment would not apply, as there was no occasion for assessee to recover said amount

Co. can’t be absolved from redressing investor’s grievance when its management is taken over by work

CL: Since company was obliged to redress investor grievances from time to time as long as it existed as a juristic person, contention of appellant that management was taken over by workers and factory premises were in possession of auction purchaser did not absolve company from its obligation

TPO couldn’t choose Cost Plus Method to fix ALP if there was functional differences in export and do

IT/ILT : Where assessee was engaged in business of manufacture and sale of industrial products such as decanters, separators etc. to its AE located abroad as well as in domestic sector, in view of fact that there were various differences in export segment and domestic segment such as market functions, geographic difference, volume difference, credit risk, related party transactions etc., TPO was not justified in adopting CPM as most appropriate method in order to make adjustment to assessee's AL

Time spent by EOU in legal remedies can’t be compensated by extension of its original period of Lett

Excise & Customs : Attachment and recovery after conformance of demand and order of Commissioner (Appeals) in favour of revenue, cannot be regarded as arbitrary or mala fide, merely because same is prior to disposal of stay petition before Tribunal

ITAT teaches basics to AO; reference should be made to DVO if assessee objects to stamp duty valuati

IT : Where assessee had title over land and he objected before Assessing Officer about value adopted by Stamp Valuation Authority which exceeded fair market value of land, Assessing Officer should have made reference to valuation officer under section 50C(2)

Now banks can decide on lending cap of loans to be granted against pledging of gold by non-agricultu

BANKING : Loans Against Gold Ornaments and Jewellery for Non-Agricultural End-Uses

RBI eases approval procedure for export of goods and services

FEMA/ILT : Export of Goods and Services - Project Exports

Operation and maintenance of windmills weren’t liable to ST under consulting engineer’s services

Service-tax : Operation and maintenance of windmills sold by client to their customers does not amount to advise/consultancy in any field of engineering and cannot not, therefore, be covered under consulting engineer

ITAT denies TDS credit to deductee on failure of deductor to deposit TDS amount to credit of Govt. i

IT : Tax deducted at source by deductor but not paid to Central Government within financial year could not be treated as payment of tax on behalf of assessee deductee and thus, assessee, could not claim credit of TDS in that financial year

No denial of export rebate on non-production of ARE-1 if other evidences proved that goods had been

Excise & Customs : Export rebate cannot be denied merely for non-production of original and duplicate copies of ARE-1, provided there is evidence that : (i) goods have been exported and (ii) they were duty-paid

No bar on block assessment if panchnama was signed by assessee even if locker mentioned in warrant y

IT : Where panchnama was signed by assessee, merely because warrant issued was limited to a locker maintained in her name which yielded nothing, same would not bar assessment under section 158BD

No service tax on maintenance or repair of motor vehicle parts by non-authorized service stations

Service Tax : Non-authorised Service/maintenance centre or workshop doing maintenance or repairs of any part of motor vehicle are excluded from scope of 'Management, Maintenance or Repair Services

Sum received on transfer of carbon credits isn’t taxable as no profit element is involved on their t

IT : Where assessee, engaged in business of power generation, received carbon credits for project activity of switching off fossil fuel from naptha and diesel to biomass, carbon credits not being linked with power generation, amount received on their transfer did not have element of profit or gain and it was not taxable

TPO couldn’t select three wheeler manufacturer as a comparable for ‘Yamaha Motors’ dealing in two wh

IT/ILT: Company manufacturing three wheeler is functionally dissimilar to company engaged in trading of two wheelers and cannot be selected as comparable

Signing a less favourable franchisee agreement with seller or denial to recall dead stock isn’t abus

Competition Act : Where fact that OP sports goods manufacturer signed agreement with informant seller that was less favourable or that OP did not take back dead stock, would not be said to be abusive of dominant position

Rebate is allowable on export of goods only when excise duty thereon is paid prior to export

Excise & Customs : Rebate is allowable only if excisable goods are exported after payment of duty i.e. duty is paid prior to export; payment of interest on belated payment of duty after goods have been exported cannot be construed to mean that condition of payment of duty prior to export of goods has been complied

HC affirms sec. 68 additions as assessee had failed to substantiate source of huge cash deposited in

IT : Where in respect of huge amount of cash deposited in bank, assessee failed to give list of persons who advanced cash to him along with their confirmation in respect of said cash credits, Assessing Officer was justified in adding said amount to assessee's taxable income under section 68.

Show Cause Notice held void as it was issued on employee of railways instead of Railways

Service Tax : Where notice is issued in name of employee of Railways and not in name of service provider/assessee being railways, entire proceedings including notice, adjudication and appeal in name of said employee was void

Sum incurred on higher studies of an associate’s daughter disallowed as it would benefits her career

IT : Where sending daughter of an associate to foreign for higher study was not in interest of profession of advocate firm but for furthering her career, expenditure was to be disallowed

Insurance services provided to vehicles used in residential colonies of employees isn’t eligible for

Service Tax : Service tax paid on insurance of vehicles provided by assessee-manufacturer for use by residents of colony maintained for its workers is not eligible for credit

No preferential shares at 85% discount despite financial exigencies if no efforts were made to rehab

CL: Where in spite of unsound financial position no efforts were made to rehabilitate company and it was proposed to issue equity shares at rate of 85 per cent discount on preferential basis on ground to meet fund requirement for company's new business, it did not constitute special circumstance to sanction petition for issuing share at a discount beyond 10 per cent

TPO couldn’t choose comparables after rejecting objections of assessee by passing cryptic order

IT/ILT : Where TPO selected companies which were not functionally comparable to assessee for purposes of benchmarking international transaction entered into by assessee and objections of assessee in that regard were rejected by a cryptic and laconic order, issue pertaining to said comparables was remanded to TPO for fresh consideration

MCA directs ICAI to suggest parameters for fraud reporting by auditors

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 149 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Company to have Board of Directors – Changes in Companies Act

Details of funds utilized by Cos on CSR activities would be available upto Sept. 2015, says

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 135 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Corporate Social Responsibility – Utilisation of CSR Funds for Welfare of SCs/STs

Ministry initiates steps to repeal Donations to National Funds Act

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 182 of the Companies Act, 2013 – Prohibitions and Restrictions Regarding Political Contributions – Provision Regarding Contribution to Political Parties by the Companies

CLB benches barred from accepting depositor's applications on default in repayment of deposits under

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/COMPANIES ACT, 1956 : Section 74 of The Companies Act, 2013 - Repayment of Deposits, etc., Accepted Before Commencement of this Act – Clarification on Section 58A(9) and Section 58AA of the Companies Act, 1956

FinMin keeps intact interest rates on PPF

IT : Section 5 of the Public Provident Fund Act, 1968 - Interest - Notified Rate of Interest on Subscriptions Made to the Fund on or After 1-4-2014 and Balances at the Credit of Subscriber

[Indian Customs Order] : Appointment of Common Adjudicating Authority

F.No.437/82/2014-Cus IV

Government of India

Ministry of Finance

Department of Revenue

(Central Board Excise & Customs)

*****

New Delhi, dated 21st July, 2014

ORDER

In terms of Notification No.15/2002-Customs (N.T.) dated 07.03.2002 (as amended)

issued under sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the Board

hereby assigns the Show Cause Notice F.No.23/17/2011-DZU/2864-2874 dated 09.06.2014

issued by Additional Director General, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Delhi Zonal Unit,

New Delhi in the case of M/s Cortel India, I-17, 1st Floor, Sector-9, NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh

and others to the Commissioner of Customs, Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad, New Delhi

for the purpose of adjudication.

(R.P.Singh)

Director (Customs)

Copy to:-

1. The Additional Director General, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Delhi Zonal Unit,

B-4, 6th Floor, Paryavaran Bhawan, C.G.O. Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi.

2. The Commissioner of Customs, C-56/42, Renu Tower, Sector-62, NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh

3. The Commissioner of Customs, Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad, New Delhi-

110020.

4. webmaster.cbec@icegate.gov.in

[Indian Customs Order] : Appointment of Common Adjudicating Authority

F.No.437/81/2014-Cus IV

Government of India

Ministry of Finance

Department of Revenue

(Central Board Excise & Customs)

*****

New Delhi, dated 21st July, 2014

ORDER

In terms of Notification No.15/2002-Customs (N.T.) dated 07.03.2002 ( as amended)

issued under sub-section (1) of section 4 of the Customs Act, 1962 (52 of 1962), the Board

hereby assigns the Show Cause Notice F.No.23/17/2011-DZU/2663-2669 dated 27.05.2014

issued by Additional Director General, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Delhi Zonal Unit,

New Delhi in the case of M/s Malhotra Electronics Pvt. Ltd., 11-C, Udyog Kendra, Greater

NOIDA, U.P. and others to the Commissioner of Customs NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh for the

purpose of adjudication.

(R.P.Singh)

Director (Customs)

Copy to:-

1. The Additional Director General, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence, Delhi Zonal Unit,

B-4, 6th Floor, Paryavaran Bhawan, C.G.O. Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi.

2. The Commissioner of Customs, C-56/42, Renu Tower, Sector-62, NOIDA, U.P.

3. The Commissioner of Customs, Inland Container Depot, Tughlakabad, New Delhi-

110020

4. webmaster.cbec@icegate.gov.in

Revenue must pass speaking order while rejecting claim of ST refund, rules HC

Excise & Customs : Competent authority is obliged to hear and consider refund claim of assessee on its own merits; mere communication rejecting refund claim could not be termed as an order

Trust can avail of depreciation on asset even if sum incurred on its acquisition is claimed as appli

IT : A trust registered under section 12A, can claim depreciation on assets of which cost has already been allowed as application of income

VAT penalty upheld as assessee failed to obtain transit pass and filed docs without sealing of chec

CST & VAT : Where assessee, a transporter, was transporting in a vehicle goods from Delhi to Tamil Nadu through Bangalore and CTO intercepted said vehicle in Karnataka State and thereupon person in-charge of vehicle had not produced necessary documents immediately and produced Xerox copies of documents after a lapse of five hours, wherein seal and signature of entry check post was not available, imposition of penalty upon assessee under section 53(12) of Karnataka Value Added Tax Act, 2003 was j

Interest on loan taken against FDRs held allowable as it was incurred exclusively to keep intact inc

IT: In order to protect interest earnings from fixed deposits and to meet her financial needs, when an assessee raises a loan against the fixed deposits, so as to keep the source of earning intact, the expenditure so incurred in wholly and exclusively to earn fixed deposit interest income has to be allowed as deduction

TP adjustment set aside as average margin of selected comparables was lower than operating margin of

IT/ILT: Where TPO made addition to assessee's ALP in respect of ITES services provided to its AE, in view of fact that classification of ITES into low-end BPO services and high-end KPO services for comparability analysis was not just and proper and, moreover, mean margin of eleven companies comprising six selected by assessee and five by TPO was lower than assessee's operating profit margin, impugned addition was to be set aside

No need to provide hearing opportunity to assessee before passing provisional attachment order under

IT : Statutory provision of section 281B does not contain requirement of hearing before passing order of provisional attachment of assessee's bank account

No withholding tax from sum paid to non-resident for services rendered outside India if it wasn’t ta

IT/ILT : Where amounts are paid outside India to persons outside Indian territory, who does not have any tax liability as far as I.T. Act, 1961 is concerned, said sum cannot be considered as 'sums chargeable' under provisions of this Act

No custom duty recovery from property of spouse of defaulter even if it was acquired from sums belon

Excise & Customs : Recovery can be made only from 'defaulter' and properties held by him and not from properties held in name of 'wife' or 'children' even if same are purchased out of money belonging to defaulter

Remedy of winding-up not allowed where a different view other than one filed by petitioner was avail

CL : Remedy of filing winding up petition cannot be allowed to be used in a case where it is possible to take different view than one propounded by petitioner

No disallowance for commission paid to NR if tax wasn’t withheld therefrom because NR didn’t have a

IT/ILT: Where assessee relying upon Circular No. 786, dated 7-2-2000, paid commission to non-resident without deducing tax at source taking a plea that parties to whom commission was paid, did not have permanent establishment in India nor had they rendered any technical services, in view of failure of revenue to bring any contrary material on record, payments in question could not be disallowed on account of non-deduction of tax at source

Mere supply of machineries by assessee without transferring its control won’t be deemed as sales

CST & VAT : Where assessee was granted a licence for setting up of a cement plant and thereupon it entered into an agreement with one 'L' and placed order on it of drawing/specifications for supply of certain machineries and subsequently said agreement was followed by yet another agreement, which envisaged a specific condition about supply of machineries by assessee to 'L' and Assessing Officer viewed that supply of machineries by assessee to 'L' was transaction of sale, since machineries procur

Assessee providing educational facilities and constructing dental colleges was engaged in charitable

IT : Genuine objects of providing education and genuine activities of constructing building in which a college was to be established, would entitle assessee to registration under section 12AA

MCA extends further validity of reserved names of companies

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 4 Of The Companies Act, 2013 – Extension Of Validity Of Reserved Names

MCA constitutes expert committee to examine issues related with maintenance of cost records and cost

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 148 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Central Government to Specify Audit of Items of Cost in Respect of Certain Companies – Constitution of Expert Committee to Examine Issues Relating to Maintenance of Cost Records and Cost Audit

Services received by UBI for transfer of funds to its member banks would fall under Banking and fina

Service Tax : Payment to a foreign co-operative society 'Society for Worldwide Inter-bank Financial Telecommunication (SWIFT)' for transfer of funds to members banks is, prima facie, taxable under Banking and Other Financial Services

Expenditure on upgradation, anti-virus and annual maintenance of software are allowable as revenue e

IT-I : Where assessee rendering detailed engineering services, made provision for costs on completed contracts in respect of various parties, in view of fact that in respect of some of parties liabilities were ascertained whereas in respect of other parties exact amount could not be quantified and provisions were contingent in nature, assessee's claim was to be partly allowed

Assessee couldn’t be liable for interest on pretext of wrong utilization of credit if it was subsequ

Cenvat Credit : Where assessee paid service tax on imported services under reverse charge and took credit thereof, said credit was not wrongly taken and merely because subsequently credit is reversed and tax paid is claimed as refund, assessee cannot be made liable to interest for wrong availment/utilization of credit

HC allows voluntary winding-up of Co. as it didn’t have any pending claims or statutory dues

CL: Where after perusing material on record, neither any claim was found pending, nor any statutory due was there, nor any assets of company were available, it would be appropriate to grant permission for dissolution of company

Income earned from offshore supplies as a part of composite contract isn’t taxable in absence of any

IT/ILT : Where pursuant to Contract entered into by assessee, a foreign company, with Power Grid Corporation for setting up a fibre optic system, AO made addition to assessee's income in respect of offshore supplies of goods, in view of fact that said contract was only for procurement of Cables that too outside India, no part of income could be said to be attributable to assessee's PE in India and, therefore, impugned addition deserved to be deleted

ITAT lays down litmus test to determine ‘closely linked’ transactions for TP purposes and for their

IT/ILT : When the transactions are influenced by each other, particularly in determining the price/profit involved in the transactions then those transactions would be regarded as 'closely linked' transactions - Held, Yes – Transactions of hiring of equipment to be used for execution of a project to be clubbed only to the extent of number of transactions with each AE – Held, Yes

Sum paid to NR for providing equipment and software to Indian clients facilitating 'Forex deal match

IT/ILT : Where, assessee, a UK based company, entered into a contract with Indian clients for providing its foreign exchange deal matching system services, in view of fact that in terms of contract, assessee allowed its subscribers to use software and computer system to have access to its portal for finding relevant information and matching their request for purchase and sale of foreign exchange, it amounted to imparting of information concerning technical, industrial, commercial or scientific e

Assessee had a right to cross examine that witness whose statement had been relied upon by departmen

Excise & Customs : Cross-examination is valuable right of accused/noticee in adjudication/quasi-judicial proceedings, as said proceedings can have adverse consequences; non providing of said opportunity amounts to violation of natural justice

Brokerage in respect of securities transactions is outside the ambit of sec. 194H TDS

IT : Brokerage paid in respect of transaction in securities is specifically excluded from purview of section 194H; no TDS was to be deducted

AO to record his satisfaction under sec. 153C even if he has jurisdiction over searched person and o

IT: Even where Assessing Officer of both 'searched person' and 'other person' is same, recording of satisfaction is still required and mandatory, so as to initiate proceeding against such 'other person'

Audited Books, Sacred Books! Revenue couldn’t reject audited books to make ex-parte assessment

IT : Books of account cannot be rejected and best judgment assessment cannot be done in a case where accounts have been audited under section 44AB

No benefit of ST Amnesty Scheme even if 50% of tax dues wasn’t paid prior to 31-12-2013 due to calcu

Service Tax : Under Voluntary Compliance Encouragement Scheme, 2013 tax payment less than 50 per cent of total declared tax dues prior to 31-12-2013, even if on account of bona fide calculation error, would amount to violation of section 107(3); declaration was to be rejected

No penalty or prosecution if return was voluntarily filed in good faith prior to detection of concea

IT : Where return filed by petitioner is voluntary, filed in good faith and before detection of any concealment, neither penalty would be levied under section 271(1)(c) nor any criminal proceedings under section 276C could be allowed

Department can’t demand duty from a person dealing in smuggled goods without confiscating said goods

Excise & Customs : Section 125 applies only if goods are confiscated; therefore, A person dealing in smuggled goods cannot be asked to pay duty under section 125 of Customs Act, if said goods are not seized/confiscated

HC upheld disallowance of commission as assessee failed to prove nature of services rendered by sub-

IT : Since appellant failed to produce evidence regarding sub-agency commission paid by showing nature of services rendered by sub-agents, said expenditure could not be allowed

Winding-up proceedings initiated through GPA didn’t get vitiated due to defect in form of GPA if it

CL : Winding up proceedings instituted through General Power of Attorney (GPA) were not to be rejected only on ground of defect in GPA when steps had been taken to cure that defect

Sale of Thermoseal and Ra Thermoseal is liable to VAT at 8%; they are not ‘medicine’

CST & VAT : Where assessee was engaged in manufacture of Thermoseal and Ra Thermoseal and it sought determination as regards classification of above products sold under its invoice dated 13-9-1993 and contended that both products were 'medicines' covered by Entry No. 24 of Part I of Schedule C of Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959, said products would not fall under above entry because of exclusion clause contained therein

Employer’s and employee’s contribution to PF and ESI are deductible if paid before due date of filin

IT-I : Payments of employee's and employer's contribution to provident fund and ESI made on or before due date for filing return of income under section 139(1) have to be allowed as deduction while computing taxable income

Laying of pipelines or conduit for inter-connection of storm water drainage pipeline isn’t liable to

Service Tax : Laying of pipelines or conduit for inter-connection of storm water drainage pipeline for Municipal Corporation or Urban Development Authority is not liable to service tax under Works Contract Services/Construction Services

Transfer of ownership rights via agreement to sell held as ‘transfer’, even if possession wasn’t giv

IT : Where assessees being, owners of a property entered into agreement to sell whereby they transferred their right of ownership in favour of purchasers who on basis of said agreement, resold a part of property and further carried out certain development work, transaction in question was to be regarded as transfer of capital asset within meaning of section 2(47)(v)

Credit of Basic Excise Duty can be utilized for payment of National Calamity Contingent Duty

Cenvat Credit : Merely because CENVAT credit in respect of NCCD can be utilized only for payment of NCCD, it does not follow that any other credit of duty cannot be utilized for payment of NCCD; hence, CENVAT credit of basic excise duty cannot be utilized for payment of NCCD on final product

Provisions of both SICA and SARFAESI Act need to be complied with for abatement of reference to BIFR

CL: For abatement of reference of sick company to BIFR satisfaction by secured creditor of condition under section 13(9) of SARFAESI Act, 2002 cannot automatically be taken as satisfaction of condition prescribed in 3rd proviso to section 15(1) of SICA as both conditions prescribe different threshold

AO’s referral to TPO doesn’t take away his powers of determining nature of exp. under sec. 37(1)

IT/ILT : Jurisdiction of Assessing Officer under section 37(1) and TPO under section 92CA is distinct and, therefore, a referral made by Assessing Officer to TPO for limited purpose of determining ALP does not take away power of Assessing Officer to determine as to whether payment made by assessee to its AE for services rendered was basically an expenditure incurred for purpose of business so as to allow same under section 37(1)

Services availed of at retail stores were not eligible for input credit, rules HC

Cenvat Credit : Internet charges, labour supply, professional services, rent, security guard charges, store maintenance and cleaning charges etc. availed at retail stores are, prima facie, ineligible for credit

Objective of Trust to finance infra-projects represents general public utility; Sec. 12AA registrati

IT : Where assessee-trust was created with object of financing infrastructure projects in State such as provision of water supply, roads, health services etc. to be implemented through municipal bodies or corporation, said object being in nature of advancement of general public utility, assessee's claim for registration under section 12AA was to be allowed

HC upheld Setcom.’s order of disallowing a sum as otherwise it could reduce undisclosed income offer

IT : Where Settlement Commission while applying gross profit rate on undisclosed income, opined that benefit of payment of excise duty could not be given to assessee as it would negate even undisclosed income shown in statement of facts, there being no illegality in said order, it deserved to be upheld

Mere criminal chargesheet against assessee without final conviction doesn’t lead to denial of CHA li

Excise & Customs : A person qualified as CHA under 1984 Regulations is not required to qualify afresh in 2004 Regulations; further, CHA license cannot be denied on ground that criminal charge sheet has been filed against assessee, as no person can be presumed guilty without conviction

Sec. 263 doesn’t stipulate recording of satisfaction before issuance of SCN if order of AO appears t

IT: Where assessee challenged show-cause notice by Commissioner under section 263 on account of non-recording of requisite satisfaction, since legal, remedy of filing appeal against order under section 263 has been provided, assessee should resort to alternative remedy of appeal

Excise and Taxation Officer can’t ask for bank guarantee from a registered dealer to release detaine

CST & VAT : Where assessee sold goods from Mandi Gobindgarh to a party outside State of Punjab and booked same with a transporter and driver after loading goods in vehicle started journey towards Ludhiana for loading cycle parts belonging to an other party and after loading cycle parts from Ludhiana, when driver was yet to leave Ludhiana, ETO detained said vehicle with goods and insisted that he would release goods only on furnishing of bank guarantee, demand of bank guarantee was unjustified

Transfer of division in exchange of shares only couldn’t be held as slump sale; HC upheld Bharat Bij

IT : Where assessee transferred its lift division to another company in terms of scheme of arrangement under section 391, read with section 394 of Companies Act, 1956, in view of fact that consideration for said transfer was not determined by parties in terms of money but its disbursement was to be in terms of allotment or issue of bonds/preference shares, it was to be regarded as a case of exchange and not a sale and, thus, provisions of section 2(42C) did not apply to assessee's case

SEBI asks AIFs to include disciplinary history of past 5 years in their placement memorandums

SEBI : Clarification and extension of deadline with respect to circular on 'Guidelines on disclosures, reporting and clarifications under AIF Regulations'

Regional offices of RBI allowed to grant authorization to Indian Agents under Money Transfer Service

FEMA/ILT : Money Transfer Service Scheme – Delegation of work to Regional Offices

RBI introduces a uniform list of State and District codes for reporting of FDI details by Indian Cos

FEMA/ILT : Foreign Direct Investment – Reporting under FDI Scheme

RBI empowers its regional offices to approve first time rupee drawing arrangements of banks with NR

FEMA/ILT : Rupee Drawing Arrangement – Delegation of work to Regional Offices

Services availed of for logistical purposes and for insurance of stocks were eligible for Cenvat cre

Service Tax : Air Fare/Air Tickets, Taxi/Car Hiring, Maintenance and Repair Charges services availed for logistical purposes and insurance taken on stocks lying in different branches and for various business assets are eligible for credit

HC dismissed writ as appellant-bank had alternate remedy of filing an appeal on charges of sec. 194A

IT: Where Act specifically provides an appeal remedy under section 246A, same has to be exhausted first by petitioner before approaching Court under Article 226 of Constitution of India

HC admits recovery suit on dishounour of cheque as borrower failed to prove allegation of fraud agai

Negotiable Instrument Act: Where in defence of dishonour of cheque, it was contended that loan transaction was mere paper entry and that there was forgery of signature on cheques but both pleas were found to be misleading, recovery suit was to be admitted

Third member of Tribunal can’t pass order without considering order referred to by Tribunal

Excise & Customs : Where Third Member of Tribunal did not consider cited order of Tribunal on sale price of package, matter was to be readjudicated

HC affirms AO’s order for treating land as capital assets situated within prescribed Municipal limit

IT : Where land sold by assessee was situated within 5 kms. of limits of local Municipal Committee, Assessing Officer rightly concluded that it fell within definition of capital asset under section 2(14) and, thus, profit arising from sale of said land was to be taxed as 'short term capital gain'

Tribunal couldn't enhance assessment if appeal related to interest on VAT refund under Bombay Sales

CST & VAT : Where Revisional Authority revised order of First Appellate Authority and withdrew interest granted to assessee and against order of Revisional Authority assessee filed second appeal before Tribunal and in said appeal revenue also filed a miscellaneous application which would have resulted in enhancing assessment of assessee, since appeal filed by assessee was covered under section 55(7)(c) of Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959, Tribunal had no power to enhance assessment as prayed by revenu

Income of STP developer from letting out of building along with other amenities in said part was bus

IT : Rental income from business of developing, operating and maintaining an industrial park and providing infrastructure facilities would be chargeable to tax under head 'Income from Business'

Laying of wooden/Synthetics flooring in sports stadium wasn’t taxable under Commercial Construction

Service Tax : Laying of wooden and synthetics flooring in Sports Stadium used for conducting of Commonwealth Games and other non-commercial bodies is not taxable under Commercial or Industrial Construction Services

HC orders winding-up against developer on its failure to refund full amount on cancellation of booki

CL : Winding up petition against real estate developer was to be admitted on its failure to refund full amount on cancellation of booking of Duplex Villa by allottee due to delay in completion of construction

No sec. 40(a)(i) disallowance on export commission paid to foreign agents before withdrawal of Circu

IT/ILT : Where assessee paid commission to foreign agents for securing order but did not deduct TDS on said payment, Circular No. 786 being in operation, invocation of provisions of section 40(a)(i), read with section 195 was incorrect

Pending applications/forms with authorities to be disposed of under Companies Act, 1956, says MCA

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Miscellaneous) Amendment Rules, 2014 – Insertion of Rule 11

MCA excludes Independent director from definition of Related Party

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Specification of Definitions Details) Amendment Rules, 2014 – Amendment in Rule 3

RBI tweaks norms on transfer or issue of foreign security

FEMA/ILT : FEM (Transfer or Issue of Any Foreign Security) (Second Amendment) Regulations, 2014 - Amendment in Regulations 6, 9, 14, 15, 19 and Schedule V

CBDT constitutes Committee to appraise efficacy of dispute resolution forums; to suggest for reducin

IT/ILT : Constitution of A Committee to Study the Appellate Orders to Examine Filing of Appeals by Department Before Various Forums

RBI allows buying of immovable properties outside India by residents under Liberalized Remittance Sc

FEMA/ILT : Liberalised Remittance Scheme (LRS) for Resident Individuals-Increase in the Limit From USD 75,000 to USD 125,000

Reassessment held justified by HC as liability was escalated by assessee to reduce tax burden

IT : Where discrepancies were found in books of account of assessee showing escalation of liability to reduce tax burden, reassessment notice was valid

ST refund can also be made by way of credit to intermediaries under Rule 6(3) of ST Rules

Service Tax : In case of cancellation of insurance policies, credits made in books of account of assessee in name of an intermediary also amount to refund for purposes of Rule 6(3) of Service Tax Rules; Revenue cannot insist on refund by individual cheques.

Income from dealing in delivery based shares with investment purposes is taxable as capital gains

IT : Where assessee carried out delivery based share transactions with an investment motive, in view of fact that period of holding in said transactions was less than one year, income arising from those transactions was to be taxed as short-term capital gain

HC denies to admit appeal as issues related to rate of duty payable by 100% EOU on its conversion to

Excise & Customs : Where issue involved in an appeal is whether, and how much, duty is payable on debonding of 100% EOU into DTA and goods exported prior to actual exit order, said issues relates to 'rate of duty' for purposes of assessment and is not appealable before High Court

Governmental subsidy received to set-up industrial projects couldn’t be reduced from actual cost of

IT: For computation of depreciation, no part of Government subsidy for encouragement for setting up of industrial projects could be deducted from actual cost/WDV of fixed assets, if same is not relatable to acquisition of assets

Assessment order quashed as it was barred by limitation period provided under Andhra Pradesh Sales T

CST& VAT: Where First Appellate Authority by order dated 26-2-2008 set aside assessment for year 2004-05 and remanded matter to Assessing Authority to quantify turnover afresh and thereafter Assessing Authority passed an order on 15-3-2012 and demanded tax from assessee, in view of limitation prescribed under section 24A of Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957, impugned order was barred by limitation

Agricultural land was to be measured when municipal limits were first notified and not when it was s

IT : For purpose of application of item (b) of sub-clause (iii) of section 2(14) and to measure KMs from radius of Municipal corporation, relevant date would be date of notification and not date of sale of land in question

No service-tax refund on Business Auxiliary Services used for purposes of export

Service-Tax : As per Notification No. 17/2009-ST, business auxiliary services received by assessee and used for purpose of export are not eligible for refund

No winding-up of Co. merely on basis of petition filed by trustee without proper authorization

CL: Where respondent was a running company, winding up order could not be passed against it merely on petition filed by trustee without proper authorisation

Handling and packing charges would be includible in sales price even if they were charged separately

CST & VAT : Where assessee carried on business for purchase of arecanut and sale of same in course of inter-State trade or commerce and in tax invoices raised it billed customers separate charges under description of handling charges at two per cent of sale price and charges for packing at rate of Rs. 60 per bag, handling charges and packing charges formed part of sale price under section 2(h) of Central Sales Tax Act, 1956

No penalty on declaration of undisclosed assets during search in absence of any evidence to prove it

IT : Where no material was found with regard to assessee's ownership of asset found in search, deeming provision in view of Explanation 5 to section 271(1)(c) could not be applied to presume deeming concealment so as to levy penalty

Hyundai Motor Group Car Sales In China, India Up 8.2 Pct In June

Hyundai Motor Group, the world's fifth-largest automotive conglomerate, said Wednesday that its sales in China and India rose 8.2 percent on-year in June, fueled by solid demand for its popular models.

The conglomerate said combined sales by its flagship companies Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. in the two countries stood at 171,188 units last month, up from 158,225 a year earlier.

China represents the largest market for Hyundai and Kia vehicles, even surpassing the United States market. India, where only Hyundai cars are sold, is also a significant market.

For the first half of this year, combined sales of the two companies stood at 1,071,065, up just under 8.8 percent from 984,585 units tallied for the previous year.

In the larger Chinese market, Hyundai and Kia, who sell cars through local affiliates Beijing Hyundai Motor Co. and Dongfeng Yueda Kia Automobile Co., said sales rose 5.1 percent and 13 percent, respectively.

Both Hyundai and Kia have production facilities in China that can churn out up to 1.79 million cars per year along with 160,000 commercial vehicles, such as trucks and buses.

Hyundai sold 86,668 cars, with Kia managing to post sales hitting 51,006 units.

The carmakers said strong sales of steady selling models, mainly compact, midsize and SUVs, and generally good consumer demand contributed to the rise in overall numbers.

Hyundai said sales of its Langdong and Verna models all surpassed the 20,000-unit mark last month, with models like ix35 CUV, Mistra midsize sedan exceeding 10,000 units.

Of all cars sold, the Langdong, a compact sedan based on the Avante, ranked No. 1 in terms of sales with 20,142 units.

Kia said sales of its K3 compacts and K2 subcompact did well, with numbers hitting 14,916 and 11,907 units, each, in the one-month period. Sales of its Forte and K5 reached a solid 5,865 and 4,394 vehicles.

In the Indian market, Hyundai sold 33,514 cars, up 9.5 percent from 30,610 units sold in June 2013.

Of the 10 models sold on the subcontinent, the Grand i10 supermini ranked No. 1 with sales hitting 7,901 units. This was followed by 7,069 Accent subcompacts being sold in the country. Combined sales of the Grand i10 and regular i10 hit 10,487.

Sales of the EON city car placed third at 6,579 units.

India is the world's third-largest new car market and an important production and export base for the South Korean carmaker, which has a plant in Chennai with an annual production capacity of 600,000 cars.

The overall rise is good news for the automaker, which aims to sell a combined 7.86 million cars in 2014, up about 4 percent from 7.56 million units sold worldwide last year. In the first half, Hyundai and Kia sales hit 4,043,415 units, a gain of 5.4 percent from 3,836,445 units sold a year earlier.

Source:- globalpost.com

Exports Rise 10% In June, Trade Deficit Touches 11-Month High

In a sign that the global economy is gaining some momentum, exports increased for the third straight month in June, growing 10.22 per cent to $26.47 billion over the same month a year ago.

Imports, too, rose 8.33 per cent to $38.24 billion after declining for several months, with gold imports surging following the easing of restrictions. This widened the trade deficit slightly to an 11-month high of $11.76 billion, against $11.28 billion in June 2013.

The increase in exports was largely driven by readymade garments, engineering goods, petroleum products, leather and handicrafts, going by quick trade data estimates released by the Commerce Ministry, on Wednesday.

“The global situation is conducive to exports as both advanced and emerging economies are showing better economic indicators. Credit flow to exporters should increase so that exporters can utilise the opportunity,” said Federation of Indian Export Organisations President Rafeeque Ahmed.

Some negatives

There was, however, a decline in gems and jewellery, electronic goods and agricultural exports.“The electronics goods sector has a small base that is getting squeezed further. This does not augur well for the skilled labour-intensive sector. The sectors where exports are declining need immediate help from the Government,” said industry body Assocham.

Gold imports rose by a whopping 65 per cent to $31.20 billion in June after the RBI allowed seven more private agencies, in addition to designated banks, to procure gold. Imports of project goods and machinery, both indicators of a revival in manufacturing activity, however, were lower in June compared with the same month last year.

Oil imports in June were 10.90 per cent higher, at $13.34 billion. Goods exports in the April-June quarter stood at $80.11 billion, 9.31 per cent higher than the comparable period of the previous year. Imports in the first quarter of the current fiscal year were at $113.196 billion, 6.92 per cent lower than last year.

The trade deficit for the April-June period was estimated at $33.08 billion, lower than the deficit of $48.32 billion in the same quarter last year.

Services exports

For the first time, the Commerce Ministry released data for services exports, based on RBI data. Services exports in May this year were valued at $13.92 billion. Services imports during the month were valued at $8.02 billion. The trade surplus was at $5.89 billion.

Source:- thehindubusinesssline.com

India Coal Demand Set To Rise 6% In Fy15, Lifting Imports

India’s coal demand is expected to rise 6% to 787 million tonnes this fiscal year, coal and power minister Piyush Goyal said, which could lift imports close to 200 million as local supply falters.

Stiff public opposition to land acquisition, environmental red tape and inherent inefficiencies of behemoth Coal India Ltd, the world’s largest coal miner, have made the country a big importer of coal despite sitting on plentiful reserves.

India’s total output has grown at an annual rate of about 2% over the past few years, reaching 566 million tonnes in the year to 31 March, when demand totalled 739.4 million tonnes.

“Over a period of one or two or three years we are confident that we will bring the position to a better situation,” Goyal told reporters, adding that the aim was to increase production by up to 8% every year.

Former banker Goyal—handed the key ministries by new Prime Minister Narendra Modi to fulfil his pledge of power to all—last week pushed a Coal India unit into opening its first mine in decades, work on which was started ten years ago.

On Thursday he urged lawmakers to help the federal government to acquire land faster for new mines and to build railway lines to connect remote pits with fuel-hungry power plants.

Goyal has also asked power companies to raise imports, which hit 169 million tonnes in 2013/14, until local supply picks up.

Coal India and closest rival Singareni Collieries Co. Ltd, which together account for more than 90% of India’s coal production, plan to produce 561.5 million tonnes this year.

This suggests that imports could be much higher than last year, benefiting suppliers such as Indonesia, Australia, South Africa and the US.

Source:- livemint.com

Amendment to sec. 11AB by FA, 2001 would not wipe out existing interest liability under erstwhile pr

Excise & Customs : Section 11AB(2), as substituted by Finance Act, 2001 and providing that section 11AB(1) would not apply if duty had become payable before 11-5-2001, only provides that interest cannot be imposed under amended section 11AB for dues prior to 11-5-2001; it does not wipe out existing liability to pay interest under unamended provisions

NBFC couldn't take shelter of prudential norms to treat overdue interest as NPA if it didn't try to

IT : Where assessee, a NBFC, did not show interest income on loans advanced to two parties on ground that interest remained overdue on it for more than six months, in view of fact that loan in question was a term loan and, moreover, assessee did not demand return of same, it could not be regarded as a non-performing asset and, thus, impugned addition made on account of interest deserved to be confirmed

India's Scrap Imports Down 40.8% During Jan-Apr '14, Says Trade Data

The scrap imports by India during the initial four months of the year declined sharply. The country’s scrap imports during this period plunged significantly upon comparison with the imports during the corresponding four-month period in 2013.

According to trade data, India imported 1,419,902 tons of scrap during Jan-Apr ’14 this year. This is 40.8% lower when compared with the imports of 2,399,880 tons during the same period last year.

During Jan to Apr ‘14, UAE was the main exporter of scrap to India. The scrap imports from the UAE totaled 372,000 tons, accounting for 26.2% of the total imports by India. The scrap imports from the UAE were marginally up by 2.7% when compared with the imports during the same period a year ago.

The second largest source of scrap imports by India was the UK. The scrap imports from the UK during the four-month period totaled 212,000 tons, down 21.6% over the previous year. The scrap imports from the UK constituted 15% of Indian imports.

South Africa remained the third largest ferrous scrap exporter to India during the initial four months of the year. The scrap imports from South Africa plunged significantly lower during the period. South Africa exported 180,000 tons of scrap into India. The scrap imports from South Africa during the first four months of the current year are nearly 56.5% lower when compared with the imports during the similar four-month period last year.The scrap imports by the country during the month of April ’14 alone totaled 426,832 tons.

Source:- metal.com

Rupee Opens Lower At 60.46 Per Dollar

The Indian rupee was trading lower on Friday as the dollar strengthened worldwide following a Malaysia Airlines plane crash in Ukraine that boosted haven assets.

The local currency opened at 60.46 per dollar against its Thursday’s close of 60.18. At 9.12am, the rupee was trading at 60.41, down 0.38% from its previous close, while India’s equity benchmark Sensex index was trading at 25,558.48 points on BSE, down 0.01%.

Most of the Asian currencies were trading lower. The Malaysian ringgit was trading down 0.35%, South Korean won was down 0.28%, Philippines peso fell 0.15%, Japanese yen slipped 0.15%, Thai baht fell 0.03%.

Since the beginning of this year, the rupee has gained 2.29%, while foreign institutional investors have bought $11.4 billion from local equity markets.

The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 8.73%, compared with its Thursday’s close of 8.73%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 80.529, up 0.03% from the previous close of 80.505.

Source:- livemint.com

Onus is on assessee to prove payment of taxes by furnishing either challans or other documentary evi

Service Tax : Where assessee claims that demand has been paid by him, it is for him to produce sufficient material before authorities either in form of challans or otherwise through cogent documentary material that tax has been paid

Issues relating to deficient Car repair services by authorized service station aren’t Competitional

Competition Law: Where OPs failed to repair car of informant despite charging hefty sum, matter related to deficiency in services provided by OPs and did not fall within domain of Competition Law

ITAT directs TPO to identify and allocate exp. on actual basis while computing operating cost for AL

IT/ILT : Matter remanded where TPO while computing operating cost to determine ALP of international transactions did not identify certain expenses on actual payment basis

No need to obtain fresh approvals under Companies Act, 2013 for past related party transactions; MCA

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 188 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Related Party Transactions - Clarifications on Matters Relating to Related Party Transactions

AO’s discretion to initiate penalty proceedings couldn’t be vitiated by revisional order of CIT

IT : In terms of section 271AAA, Assessing Officer has discretionary power to initiate penalty proceedings and, therefore, revisional order under section 263 cannot be passed for directing Assessing Officer to initiate penalty proceedings

Revenue had no discretion to levy lesser penalty than duty without challenging validity of Rule 96ZO

Excise & Customs : Where validity of Rule 96ZO of Central Excise Rules, 1944 is not under challenge, penalty leviable under said rule would be equal to duty and there is no discretion with authorities to levy lesser penalty

HC deletes disallowance for TDS default which was invoked by AO without giving an opportunity to ass

IT : Where AO disallowed payment of freight expenses on account of non-deduction of tax at source without giving assessee an opportunity to collect necessary evidence and explaining same in support of its case, there being violation of principles of natural justice, impugned disallowance diserved to be deleted

Revenue couldn’t seek confiscation and penalty on undervaluation of banned goods without raising suc

Excise & Customs : Where grounds of undervaluation and confiscation/penalty on that count were not raised in show-cause notice as well as adjudication order, department could not confirm confiscation/penalty on that ground

Benefit of Article 8 of India-Malaysia DTAA is available for shipping of goods under a slot charter

IT/ILT : Benefit of Article 8 of the Indo-Malaysia DTAA is also applicable to shipping of goods from Indian Port to Hub Port using feeder vessels under a space charter or slot charter as the entire voyage from the Indian Port to final destination port is inextricably linked and cannot be segregated. "Operation of ship" for Article 8 purposes can be done as charterer which does not mean to own or control the ship either as owner or as a lessee The word "charterer" should not be confused with the

Revenue has to enquire into whether duplex house is one house or two separate houses before determin

IT: Where assessee claimed that two flats owned by him in a building in fact formed a single property by way of one duplex flat and, thus, its annual value was to be assessed at nil, matter was to be remanded back for disposal as to whether it was a case of two separate residential houses joined together for easy access, or two flats represented a single residential house by applying user test

Recovery proceedings against assessee upheld as it related to assessments made prior to transfer of

CST & VAT: Where assessee had transferred his business in name of his daughter in year 1997 and thereafter Assessing Authority issued on assessee revenue recovery notice, wherein certain amount was claimed as demand made pursuant to assessments completed in years 1987-88 and 1994-95 as also an order of penalty in year 1993-94, initiation of recovery proceedings against assessee was justified

Export of ready to print books via CD or email deemed as customized electronic data; eligible for se

IT: 'Ready to print books' exported by assessee in form of a CD or e-mail are customized electronic data eligible for claiming benefit of deduction under section 10B

MCA asks ROCs to ensure compliance of Emblems and Names Act while allotting names to Cos

COMPANIES ACT, 2013 : Section 4 of the Companies Act, 2013 - Memorandum - Registration of Names of the Companies Shall be in Consonance with Provisions of Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper use) Act, 1950

Delhi Govt. asks for details of TAN and tax deficiency admitted during search in revised Form DVAT

GST/Indian Acts & Rules : Delhi Value Added Tax (Second Amendment) Rules, 2014 - Amendment in Rule 57A, Annexure-1, Form DVAT-16, 17 & 48

Interest on FDR isn’t an income from International Transaction; to be excluded from operating income

IT/ILT : Where assessee-company was engaged in rendering only mediatory and support services to its AE located abroad, interest income earned by it on amount deposited in FDRs would not qualify as income from international transactions and, consequently, same could not be included in operating income while determining ALP on basis of TNMM

In case of combination packs of dissimilar products, excise duty is to levied on individual MRP of e

Excise & Customs : If a manufacturer manufactures two products A and B, both notified under section 4A, and clears them as combination pack, duty has to be paid in respect of each item separately on basis of its individual MRP, its individual rate of abatement and individual rate of duty; and not on basis of MRP of combination pack

No Special Resolution required for capital reduction if an approved arrangement had already included

CL: While construing a scheme or resolution effecting reduction of capital, though section 100(2) requires same to be done through a special resolution for reducing share capital passed by members, it would be sufficient if all members were put on notice of proposed agenda of reduction of share capital and requisite majority for a special resolution, as posited by section 189(2), approve or consent to same

HC directs first appellate authority to consider case on merits as Commissioner had set aside its re

CST & VAT: Where First Appellate Authority set aside assessment order passed by Assessing Authority and remanded case to him to make fresh assessment and thereafter Commissioner, in exercise of his revisional powers, set aside order of First Appellate Authority, in light of provisions of appeal contained in section 62 of Karnataka Value Added Tax Act, 2003, matter was remanded to First Appellate Authority for reconsideration of appeal on merits

Construction of house without permission of Municipality doesn’t disentitle one to sec. 54F relief

IT : Where AO rejected assessee's claim for deduction under section 54F in respect of amount invested in construction of building on ground that permission from Executive Engineer, Municipality had not been obtained before construction of building, in view of fact that assessee had in fact constructed house which was evident from copy of certificate of valuation by Municipal Engineer, impugned order rejecting assessee's claim was to be set aside

HC denied writ petition on refund of deposit as petition had alternate remedy of arbitration

SEBI: Where petitioner, member of stock exchange, invoked writ jurisdiction for refund of security deposit at time of resigning from membership of stock exchange instead of resorting to arbitration, writ petition was not maintainable as alternative, efficacious and speedy remedy was available

Delay in requesting for listing with SEBI doesn’t lead to imposition of complete ban on listing of c

SCRA : For delay in making an application for listing, a company should not be denied benefit of listing forever

Tribunal was empowered to hear appeal in case of interest on drawback if it was allowed by it in ear

Excise & Customs : Tribunal would have jurisdiction to decide an appeal relating to interest on drawback where drawback was allowed by Tribunal

HC denies to interfere with order of ITAT as dispute related to estimation of Net Profit rate

IT: Profit of contractor depend upon various factors like place of execution of contract, accessibility of labour, raw material, etc. and would, therefore, vary from contractor to contractor

Agreement amongst parties won’t transfer ST liability from service provider to service recipient

Service Tax: Substantive and legislatively mandated liability to service tax would not be transferred from service provider of sale of space or time of advertisement to advertisers being service recipients

CCI negates abuse of dominance position by ‘Ansal’ due to presence of other real estate developers i

Competition Act : Where large number of real estate developers having all India presence were operating in relevant market, no one could be said to be dominant in relevant market and, thus, question of abuse of dominant position did not arise

TP adjustment set aside while making working capital adjustment as data of assessee-co. wasn’t analy

IT/ILT : Where in transfer pricing proceedings, TPO made certain addition to assessee's ALP in respect of import of hi-tech products from AE, in view of fact that while making said addition, TPO as well as DRP considered working capital adjustment only with respect to comparables submitted by assessee but same was not analysed with respect to data of assessee company, impugned adjustment was to be set aside and matter was to be remanded back for disposal afresh

Verdict in Satyam's case: SEBI bars 'Ramalinga Raju' from accessing securities market for 14 long ye

SEBI : Ramalinga Raju and others individually as well as acting in concert falsified books of account and mis-stated financials of Satyam Computers and, thus, portrayed a false picture of its published quarterly/annual results; they also provided false CEO/CFO certification, made various announcements and issued advertisements/press releases on basis of falsified and mis-stated financial position of company and indulged in insider trading on basis of unpublished price sensitive information (UPSI

India's Exports Up 10.22% To Usd 26.4 Bn In June

India's exports grew by 10.22 per cent to USD 26.4 billion in June this year while imports stood at USD 38.24 billion, up by 8.33 per cent, leaving a trade deficit of USD 11.76 billion, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry's data.



Country's exports stood at USD 24 billion in June last year while imports were at USD 35.3 billion, the data showed.



Exports in May rose by 12.4 per cent to USD 28 billion over the same month a year ago, while imports fell by 11.4 per cent to USD 39.23 billion.



In the April-June period, exports grew by 9.31 per cent to USD 80.11 billion.



Imports, however, dipped by 6.92 per cent to USD 113.19 billion during the first three months of this financial year. Trade deficit during the period stood at USD 33.08 billion.



Oil imports increased by 10.9 per cent in June to USD 13.34 billion. Non-oil imports during the month under review were up by 7 per cent to USD 24.9 billion.



Country's gold imports were up by 65.13 per cent to USD 3.12 billion in June this year from USD 1.88 billion in the same month last year.

Source:- http://ift.tt/15HW3lL