Tuesday, 14 January 2014

Penalty slapped on assessee for claiming false claim in return in connivance with his advocate

IT : Where assessee in connivance with his advocate had not only filed false return but also received refund and encashed it, imposition of penalty was justified


ITAT mistook child birth as an act of god; HC allows sec. 10(23C) relief to maternity hospital

IT : Allahabad HC: Maternity hospital entitled to tax exemption u/s 10(23C)(iiiae)


Assessee can’t ask for refund of excess payment of entry taxes if burden thereof is passed on to cus

CST & VAT : Where assessee has paid excess entry tax on inputs and burden thereof has been passed on to customers, assessee cannot be granted refund of such excess tax


Application not entertained by Setcom to be placed before appropriate bench, rules HC

IT: If application was not being entertained by Settlement Commission, same should have been placed before appropriate Bench


In Tea Cup, First Flush Of Privatisation

The Mamata Banerjee government’s announcement yesterday that a “transaction adviser” would be asked whether to keep the state’s equity in five tea gardens is being seen as a sign that the chief minister is willing to consider a privatisation policy tied to job security.



If the move to appoint a “transaction adviser” eventually takes the government out of the gardens, it will mark a turning point in the chief minister’s career and a milestone in Bengal where such paths have always been pockmarked by pitfalls.



“The government has decided to bring in a strategic investor. A transaction adviser will also be appointed to advise the government on whether to keep its equity or not,” finance minister Amit Mitra had said yesterday. A strategic investor is an entity with the domain knowledge to run a particular business while the original owner, in this case the government, remains so.



Mitra’s statement need not mean that a strategic investor or a potential buyer in the future will necessarily have to be from the private sector or the government will indeed implement a recommendation to exit from the five gardens in north Bengal.



But the very fact that the Mamata government is willing to experiment with a model that does not foreclose the option of finding a buyer for a business that should be no government’s business is being taken note of.



“It is a welcome step, even though a baby step. It is a move in the right direction. I hope it is the beginning,” said a city-based industrialist who did not want to be named since the picture is not yet fully clear.



The five loss-making gardens are Rungmook-Cedars, Rangaroon and Pandam gardens in the Darjeeling hills, and Hilla and Mahua tea estates in the Dooars.


Central to the policy is a vow to protect jobs — the most sensitive aspect of any privatisation plan. “We are presenting this as a model. The workers would be offered government jobs. They will have the option. There are many, many vacancies in government offices. Karur chakri jabena (nobody will be jobless),” Mitra had said yesterday.



Not all employees of all loss-making companies can be given government jobs in the long run so that the firms turn attractive to potential buyers. But the Mamata government has taken the first tentative step on the basis of such an assurance, probably to ensure that the Opposition does not fish in troubled waters.



The Trinamul manifesto for the 2011 Assembly polls had left enough room for manoeuvre. It says private investors can be invited to revive sick industries but the state will have a role in the process and the interest of employees will be protected.



Bengal’s past makes it clear that any government trying to shed the millstones around its neck will require dexterous skills at negotiating treacherous curves.



The cookie literally crumbled on the Left Front government when it tried to dip its toe in the privatisation pool — albeit because of stiff opposition from within, something Mamata does not have to worry about.



In the mid-1990s, the CPM-led government had handed over Lilly Biscuit, a sick state-run unit, to a private investor. “But it was done in a hurry and the initiative was an unsuccessful one…. The private investor who had taken over the unit stopped producing biscuits,” a CPM leader said.



The resistance, particularly from the CPM’s labour wing Citu, had left the state government in a spot. The impact was evident when Citu forced the Centre to stay away from inviting investors to run two sick central PSUs — Cycle Corporation of India and Mining Allied Machinery — in the late 1990s.



“Just before the movement, Lilly Biscuit was handed over to a private partner…. The protest was a clear signal to the state government also on what it could face if it went ahead with similar policies,” said a retired IAS officer.



After Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee took over from Jyoti Basu, the state government had launched an industrial reconstruction initiative. In 2003-04, the government agreed to restructured 30-odd sick state PSUs with assistance of Rs 208.67 crore from the DFID.



It was decided that the government would try to run a majority of the units after restructuring them or it would try to find a private partner. The last option was to close down the units that cannot be revived.



As many as 21 units were shut down and four were retained after restructuring. Three were run on the joint venture model. Only one — the then Great Eastern Hotel — was handed over to a private investor. The refurbished hotel was formally unveiled in November last year as the Lalit Great Eastern.



But the effort to restructure the sick units had come to a halt in 2009 when the state government decided to take up another 28 PSUs, including the West Bengal Film Development Corporation, the tourism corporation, transport corporations and some dairies.



“Some prominent CPM leaders and Citu had mounted stiff resistance, saying thousands would lose jobs. The Left Front government had stalled the second phase of restructuring following the protests in 2009,” an official said.



Some industry sources suggested that the Mamata government was in touch with central public sector companies like Andrew Yule, which owns


gardens in Bengal, to find out if they are interested in a role in the five estates. If PSUs take over the gardens, it cannot be strictly called privatisation.



But industry observers took heart from signals that the government seemed ready to let go of ownership and management control of loss-making firms. “In the current national atmosphere of playing to the galleries, any sign that prudence is taking precedence over political compulsions is welcome,” one analyst said.


Source:- telegraphindia.com





Input used in generation of dutiable waste are eligible for credit even if final product is exempted

Excise & Customs : Waste or Scrap is also a final product; therefore, in case of a manufacturer whose main final product is exempt, but, waste/scrap is liable to duty, he is entitled to credit of proportionate inputs which generated such waste/scrap in manufacturing process


Commercial And Development Activity Suspended At Sez In Mundra

In a significant development, the Gujarat High Court on Monday ordered the suspension of all commercial and development activity inside the 21 units at the Adani Group’s Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) at Mundra in Kutch district with immediate effect.



A division bench of the High Court, comprising Chief Justice Bhaskar Bhattacharya and Justice J.B. Pardiwala, passed the order following a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by the villagers of Navinal, located inside the Mundra SEZ, alleging serious violations of the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) notification, 2006 by the company and the units there.



“The court observed that the SEZ and several units had come up there, developed the plots allotted to them and earned profits from commercial production before the SEZ received the deemed environment clearance from the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF). This is in clear violation of the basic core of the EIA notification,” said Anand Yagnik, counsel for the petitioners.



The industrial units, including the developer APSEZ and firms like Aadi Group, Empezar Logistics, Avesta Process Equipment and Modular, Ashapura Garments, Terram Geosynthetics, Thermax Limited (SEZ Unit), SKAPS Industries, Oilfield Warehouse & Services, Dorf Ketal Speciality Catalyst, Anjani Udyog and Oriental Carbon Chemicals have been asked to shut operations.



“Today [Monday], the High Court has pronounced an order against 12 manufacturing units in Mundra SEZ. These units have been directed not to undertake any construction/operational/manufacturing activity till an environmental clearance is granted to Mundra SEZ. The Court has directed the MoEF to decide on granting of EC, to Mundra SEZ within 30 days,” stated an official company statement.



But, none of the berths at the company’s Mundra port have been affected by this order. The operations at Mundra port were normal, the statement claimed.



The SEZ received a deemed environment clearance from the MoEF in May 2012, but prior to this, the SEZ and several units inside it had become functional and started making profits from commercial operations. In violation of the EIA notification, the SEZ developer and several units had developed their piece of land and were doing commercial business, Mr. Yagnik asserted.



He added that, “According to the EIA notification, environment clearance has to be obtained prospectively and the same can’t be applied retrospectively.”



Mr. Yagnik said the court has directed the Centre, the MoEF and the Gujarat government to consider issuing granting deemed clearance to the remaining units in the next 30 days. He informed that the High Court has also ordered to consider the recommendations and report submitted by the Sunita Narain committee appointed by the MoEF.



The Adani Group has pumped in around Rs. 20,000 crore in Mundra and about Rs. 7,000 crore for the SEZ, with a proposed area of some 18,000 hectares.


Source:- thehindu.com





Assets had to be termed as capital assets after considering the notification extending municipal lim

IT: Land situated within limits of 8 Kms from any Municipality would be a capital asset, sale of which would attract capital gain


Goldman Sachs Pulls Out From Pacific Coal Export Project

Goldman Sachs has pulled out its investment in the proposed Gateway Pacific Terminal, expected to be the largest coal export terminal in North America.The investment bank this week sold its 49 percent ownership of FRS Capital Corp. stock, the holding company of Seattle-based port operator Carrix Inc., the parent company behind the Gateway Pacific Terminal.



The new investor is Fernando Chico Pardo, a Mexican businessman."We've been fortunate the past seven years to work closely with one of the world's leading investors in infrastructure and their fine people but appreciate that, as with all investment funds representing an array of investors, they approach their investments with a need to invest, hold and then sell over a defined time frame," said Carrix Chairman Jon Hemingway in a news release.



The shift in ownership is not expected to affect the proposed project in Bellingham, Wash., says terminal developer SSA Marine, a unit of Carrix.



"We are full speed ahead on [the] Gateway Pacific Terminal," Bob Watters, senior vice president of SSA Marine, was quoted as saying by the Puget Sound Business Journal. He added that the company is hoping to have an environmental impact study and permitting process finished within two years.



The terminal, if built, would transfer as much as 48 million tons of Wyoming coal each year from trains to ocean-going vessels bound for Asia.



Of six coal export terminals proposed in Oregon and Washington, three have been dropped in the last two years.



Environmentalists and locals concerned about coal dust and diesel pollution from trains have opposed the projects. Conservation groups also argue that it doesn't make sense environmentally for the nation's utilities to cut on coal in favor of cleaner natural gas and renewables while providing fuel to coal-fired power plants in Asia, particularly in China.



"We already know that local Main Street businesses would feel the negative impacts from coal export, and communities across the region are saying no to this bad deal because of health, climate, environmental and economic impacts," Crina Hoyer, executive director of Bellingham, Wash., environmental group RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, said in a news release.



"Goldman Sachs' stepping away from coal export is yet another sign from Wall Street that coal export is a losing investment," she said.Goldman Sachs' pullout comes six months after the release of its report titled, "The Window for Thermal Coal Investment Is Closing," which stated: "We believe thermal coal demand growth will slow down in the coming years. ... The potential for profitable investments in new thermal coal mining capacity is becoming increasingly limited."



Furthermore, the International Energy Agency in its annual outlook for the global coal sector released last month noted "uncertainties surrounding future demand in China and actions by environmental and anti-coal groups will also hamper the growth of U.S. coal exports."


Source:- dalje.com





Posco India Reducing Proposed Steel-Making Capacity By 33%

South Korean steel maker Posco’s Indian arm is reducing its proposed steel-making capacity by one-third in the first phase of its $12 billion steel plant to get necessary clearances following a delay of more than eight years to set up the factory.

“Originally, you know, the proposal was for a 12 million tonne per annum steel plant,” said Gautam Bambawale, joint secretary in the ministry of external affairs in charge of East Asia. “The current proposal is for a 8 million tonne steel plant and it requires 2,700 acres of land which has already been acquired by the government of Odisha and with the environment clearance being extended (for five years)... I think now the project is all set to move forward and go ahead,” Bambawale told reporters in New Delhi.

Another official later added that the plant capacity of eight million tonnes would be scaled up to 12 million tonnes in the next phase “once land and other clearances are available”.

The officials were speaking to reporters ahead of the visit this week by South Korean president Park Geun-hye to New Delhi and Bangalore.

Billed as India’s largest foreign direct investment, Posco’s plan to build a steel plant in Odisha had waited almost two years for the sign-off after the nation’s pollution watchdog suspended approvals in 2012. But last week, the environment ministry revalidated environment approval for the project in Odisha, Posco India spokesman I.G. Lee told Reuters.

Posco’s plant is among projects valued at $160 billion that remain stalled a year after Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh set up a panel to accelerate investments.

Park, who took office last year to become South Korea’s first female leader, will visit India from 15 January to 18 January. This is the first visit by a South Korean leader to Asia’s third biggest economy since 2010, when her predecessor Lee Myung-Bak was in New Delhi as the chief guest at India’s Republic Day Parade.

“We do hope that Posco India will commence the project very, very soon,” Bambawale said.

Referring to the trade imbalance that has crept into bilateral commerce following the two sides tying up a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) in 2009, Bambawale said India would press South Korea for more access for Indian products to bridge the deficit. Bilateral trade in 2012 was $18 billion according to Indian foreign ministry statistics.

Park would be accompanied on the visit by three ministers—the foreign minister, trade minister and the minister for science and technology.


Source:- livemint.com





Stung By Local Cotton Prices, Chinese Yarn Makers Go Global

Chinese yarn makers, crippled by artificially high prices for cotton at home, are shifting production overseas to secure cheaper raw materials, even going as far afield as the United States.



In what promises to be a major shakeup of China's cotton milling industry, the world's largest, firms such as Hong Kong-listed Texhong Textile Group and Shanghai-listed Bros Eastern Co are leading the charge abroad.



The trend looks set to boost demand in international cotton markets, bolstering prices that climbed 13 percent last year when U.S. farmers planted their smallest crop in four years amid worries over record global inventory.



China holds more than half the world's cotton stocks after three years of state-sponsored hoarding to support farmers. That has sent local prices for raw fibre soaring, hurting mills which are also subject to a strict quota system for cheaper imports.



"The government has over the last few years supported the farmers and basically ignored the spinners," said Dennis Lam, analyst at DBS Vickers in Hong Kong. "Across the board it's been very tough, there's an exodus of capacity."



Vietnam has emerged as the favourite destination due to its free access to global cotton markets and a border with China, as well as an agreement between the two for duty-free yarn exports.



Around 15 Chinese cotton mills have set up in Vietnam in the last 18 months, said Alex Hsu, general manager at Taiwan cotton trader Formosa Cotton, a supplier to yarn makers around the region including in China and Vietnam.



Yarn makers, or millers, spin raw fibre into yarn, which they turn into textiles themselves or sell on to textile firms.



Of the roughly 250 million spindles worldwide, about 120 million are in China, versus 48 million in No.2 yarn maker, India, International Textile Manufacturers Federation data shows.



China's state reserves were paying 20,400 yuan ($3,400) per tonne of cotton last year, almost double New York futures.



GO WEST



Beyond access to cheap cotton, Vietnam's appeal also includes low operating costs and a robust logistics network, but other destinations could grow in popularity.



"Almost everybody, especially India, Indonesia, and even South Korea and the U.S. are more competitive than China if you include raw material costs," said ITMF Director General Christian Schindler, noting that cotton makes up 50-70 percent of manufacturing costs in spinning.



Indeed, Hangzhou-based Keer Group is on track to be the first Chinese yarn maker to set up in the United States - expected to break ground on a $218 million spinning factory in South Carolina in February.



Keer Chairman Zhu Shanqing said the investment was driven by proximity to cotton producers and access to Charleston port from where it would ship yarn back to China.



Lower international cotton prices were also a major incentive for the 30,000-tonne-per-year factory, said a management board official who declined to be named.



"If you have a highly automated machine, then (U.S.) labour costs are very low," said Schindler. "How strong this trend will be, however, remains to be seen. You need downstream industries to make a good case and the weaving industry has seen significant reduction in the U.S."



Chinese yarn makers have been showing interest in Pakistan, said a source at the country's Beijing embassy. Textile firm Shandong Ruyi Science & Technology Group has announced plans to acquire a 52-percent stake in yarn and clothing company Masood Textile Mills.



And India, with a larger workforce than Vietnam and a more established yarn industry, also has potential.



ITMF's Schindler said that while there has been no talk of actual Chinese investment to date, China's labour costs were rising more rapidly than in India, suggesting that such a move could be on the cards down the line.



KEY MARKETS



Access to growing demand overseas is also pushing yarn makers abroad. Although still the world's top buyer of cotton, Chinese consumption has fallen almost 30 percent since 2009, while imports have risen in neighbouring countries.



And Vietnamese garment makers will be beneficiaries of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free trade bloc to include markets such as the United States and Japan, bolstering appetite for yarn.



"Prior to 2012 there was just one Chinese mill operating in Vietnam with any real investment," said Formosa's Hsu. That firm, Texhong, has rapidly expanded over the last two years to benefit from lower cotton prices, exporting yarn back to China.



Texhong has 730,000 spindles in Vietnam, about 40 percent of its total output. That will grow to 50 percent by March.



"Vietnam's cotton is internationally traded, it's not controlled by import quotas like China," said Chairman Hong Tianzhu.



Bros Eastern, another of China's largest spinners, started production at a $98 million factory in Vietnam in November, partly due to the plentiful supply of raw cotton.Shenzhen-based Huafu has recently visited the country to explore investment, said a source. The company declined comment.

The wave of investment comes as China, forced to lease grain warehouses for its overflowing cotton stocks, evaluates a plan to scrap the stockpiling programme after intense lobbying from the textile sector. But even if the policy is canned, spinners will keep moving abroad or face rapid consolidation, say industry watchers.



Many small mills have already gone under while others are turning to importing, rather than manufacturing, yarn.Larger firms have survived by moving into more complex blended products or synthetic fibres such as spandex.



"Yarn is a fairly commoditised product so in volumes it comes down to cost and China has never really been that cheap. Their (advantage) is really downstream, in high-value garments," said Formosa's Hsu.



Keen to promote higher value industries, Beijing may simply allow small cotton mills to die out, helping larger ones consolidate and increase efficiency.But big yarn makers say overseas investment offers valuable diversification for the long-term."China's policy could change very quickly but it won't remove the whole (cotton) price gap all at once," said Texhong's Hong.


Source:- reuters.com





Iron Ore Exports Fell 52% In 2013

Continuing a downward trend for a fifth year in a row, India's iron ore exports declined 52.5 per cent to 14.1 million tonnes for the calendar year 2013 (CY13).



This includes 820,000 tonnes of iron ore pellets. In CY2012, exports were 29.7 mt. The export in 2013 was a tenth of the peak seen in 2009. India is now the 10th largest exporter, from fourth the previous year, in the world.



China is the world's largest consumer of iron ore; 80-90 per cent of global export goes there.



The decline in 2013 was mainly due to the absence of Goa as compared to the previous year. Mining and transportation Goa was suspended there in the second half of 2012, on a direction of the Supreme Court. The continuing ban on export from Karnataka added to the drop.



"From 2014, the situation might improve but not dramatically. With more caps and bans on production and exports India might never regain its Number 3 ranking in the global export market," according to Delhi-based OreTeam Exim Pvt Ltd, which tracks the industry.



CY 2013 also saw India's ranking going below 10th on the global list of exporters of iron ore to China. Till 2011, India was behind only Australia and Brazil, both exporting 90-95 per cent of their surplus to the China. In 2012, we slipped to fourth position, behind South Africa. In 2013, India pushed out of the top 10; Iran, Indonesia, Malaysia and Canada were among those which overtook us in the export market, said Prakash Duvvuri, head of research, OreTeam.



"However, we expect Goan iron ore to rejoin the export race in 2014, giving some lift to the volumes," he said.



On the other hand, the Indian ore pellet export market is likely to remain flat in 2014. Essar, JSPL, Ardent, Stemcor and GPIL are concentrating equally on the export and domestic market. This will ensure some of the pellet volumes are diverted to China and Japan, he added.


Source:- business-standard.com





ITAT advices AO not to expect PAN of 3 crores rural depositors of Sahara; deletes ad-hoc additions u

IT : In course of proceedings under section 68, production of hard copies or printouts of computer record would be sufficient compliance of requirements asked by notices or summons and, thus, addition cannot be made merely on ground that requisite information was not furnished in desired soft copy format


India May Cut Iranian Oil Imports By 15% In 2014-15

India may cut Iranian oil imports by 15% in 2014-15 from the current fiscal year’s target, if western sanctions on Iran are not eased and the situation remains the same, a senior oil ministry official said on Tuesday.


India, Iran’s second-biggest customer after China, may import 180,000-185,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian oil in 2014-15 fiscal year beginning in April, and would be able to import close to the targeted 220,000 bpd in the current fiscal year, R.K. Singh told reporters.

Tough US and EU sanctions have slashed exports from Iran by more than half to about 1 million barrels per day (bpd), costing it as much as $80 billion in lost revenue since early 2012, according to White House estimates.

Even though a breakthrough accord was reached in November between world powers and Tehran over its disputed nuclear programme, tough work lies ahead in moving on from the initial deal


Source:- livemint.com





Export commission paid to NR outside India for services rendered outside India out of the ambit of T

IT/ILT: Where assessee had paid export commission to its non-resident agent, in view of fact that services of non-resident agents were rendered outside India and commission was also paid outside India, income of such agent by way of commission could not be considered as accrued or arisen or deemed to be accrued or arisen in India


Rebate of duty is available on export of goods if goods are proved to have been actually exported

Excise & Customs : Condition of grant of rebate that exports must be made directly from factory/warehouse can be waived only if there is proof that goods have actually been exported to satisfaction of rebate sanctioning authority and goods are clearly identifiable and co-relatable with duty-paid goods cleared from factory


CLB constituted interim board with existing directors which ceased to hold office due to operation o

CL : Where additional directors ceased to be directors because of non-confirmation of their appointment in AGM due to failure of company to hold said AGM, interim Board of Directors was to be constituted in which these directors were to continue as Directors


RBI allows cancellation and rebooking of forward contracts for all current and capital account trans

FEMA/ILT : Risk Management and Inter Bank Dealings


EXIM bank extends line of credit of USD 125 million to Sudan

FEMA/ILT : Exim Bank's Line of Credit of USD 125 Million to The Government of The Republic of Sudan


CBDT notifies ‘Orissa State AIDS Control Society’ for sec. 10(46) exemptions

IT : Section 10(46) of The Income-Tax Act, 1961 - Exemptions - Statutory Body/Authority/Board/Commission - Notified Body or Authority - Orissa State Aids Control Society


RBI releases new guidelines for banks for opening accounts of mentally challenged persons

BANKING : Legal Guardianship Certificates issued under The Mental Health Act, 1987 and National Trust for The Welfare of Persons With Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999


Seized sum couldn’t be added as unexplained money if assessee had explained its source

IT: Where in support of cash seized during search, assessee brought on record its cash book which duly showed that said amount belonged to its particular branch office, amount so seized could not be added to assessee's taxable income taking it to be unexplained money


Late payment of taxes due to delay in payments by service recipients is reasonable excuse to seek pe

Service Tax : Where delay in payments by service recipients seriously erodes assessee's cash flow leading to insufficiency of funds for paying taxes, it amounts to 'reasonable excuse' for default/delay in payment of tax; no penalty is leviable in such cases


Banking route proves to be a sacred route; no unexplained credit for sum received via banking channe

IT: Where assessee-company purchased land through 'N' and money given to 'N' for that purchase was fully explained in assessee's books of account, such money could not be treated as assessee's undisclosed income


Assessee can’t challenge Custom tariff value on the ground that it’s not in consonance with transact

Excise & Customs : In view of non-obstante clause in section 14(2) of Customs Act, in case of notified goods, assessee cannot state that section 14(2) does not apply to his Import and that duty is payable only on transaction value declared by him; so long as said tariff value fixed by Revenue is not under challenge, assessee cannot insist to pay duty on transaction value


ST exemption on sponsorship of sports events by national sports federation extended to international

GST : Section 93, Read With Section 65(99A), of The Finance Act, 1994 - Exemptions - Service Tax - Sponsorship Services - Entry 11(A) of Not. No. 25/2012-ST Amended to Extend Exemption to Services by Way of Sponsorship of Sporting Events Organized by A National Sports Federation, or Its Affiliated Federations, Where The Participating Teams or Individuals Represent Any "Country" as Well


ITAT applies Nike’s case to hold that no tax leviable on Indian ‘LO’ engaged in procuring goods for

IT/ILT : ITAT applies Nike ruling of Kar. HC to exempt Tesco under Expln 1(b) to sec. 9(1)(i) wrt its Indian LO's activities


RWA providing services to own members; contributions exceeding Rs. 5,000 p.m. fully liable to ST

GST : Section 93, Read With Section 67, of The Finance Act, 1994 - Exemptions - Service Tax - Unincorporated/Non-Profit Entity Arranging Exempt Services for Its Members - CBEC Clarifies in Respect of Exemption Under Entry 28(C) of Notification No. 25/2012-ST That : (I) If Amount Exceeds Rs. 5,000 P.M., Full Amount Would be Taxable ; (II) SSI-Exemption, Pure Agent Benefit and Cenvat Credit Benefit Would be Available to Resident Welfare Association (RWA); (III) Benefit of Pure Agent Would Not be A


Assessee ceased to be owner of property which was transferred to trust; not includible in her wealth

WT: Where on basis of material on record, Tribunal concluded that after executing trust deed assessee no longer remained owner of property transferred to a trust, said property could not be included in net wealth of assesse in course of wealth-tax proceedings


Application for doctrine of promissory estoppels can be restrained if govt. shows overriding public

CST & VAT : Where assessee, a sick company, was revived by BIFR and BIFR had directed sales tax authorities to consider extension of exemption and such order was not challenged by Government, Government was bound by it, especially when no overriding public interest was shown to avoid application of promissory estoppel


Revenue to refund sale proceeds of property auctioned to recover excise duty as it was mortgaged wit

Excise & Customs : Where department had auctioned property belonging to manufacturer to recover pending excise dues and such property was found to be mortgaged with bank, department was liable to refund sale proceeds back to buyer-in-auction with 12% simple interest


No concealment penalty on mere TP adjustment if such issue was of debatable nature

IT/ILT: Where TPO determined ALP of international transaction at a higher amount as against disclosed by assessee and thereupon Assessing Officer made addition in income of assessee and also imposed penalty under section 271(1)(c) on basis of impugned addition, since issues on basis of which ALP shown by assessee had been rejected were debatable, they could not be said to be leading to concealment of income


Large intra group trades to artificially increase volume of a scrip held manipulative; violates FUTP

SEBI : Large number of intra-group trades entered into by appellants among themselves with insignificant difference in price and time were manipulative and were in violation of FUTP Regulations