Thursday 25 September 2014

No deemed concealment if additional income was declared by assessee pursuant to search via belated r

IT: In absence of any limitation or restriction relating to words 'due date' given in clause (b) of Explanation 5A to section 271(1)(c), it cannot be read as 'due date' as provided in section 139(1) alone rather it can also mean date of filing of return of income under section 139(4)


Interest paid on borrowings used for investment in foreign co. disallowed as this wasn’t assessee’s

IT : Where interest paid on borrowals utilized for investments in a foreign company was not in course of assessee's business, its claim for deduction under section 36(1)(iii) was to be rejected


High Court upheld penalty on assessee’s failure to file monthly VAT returns and pay VAT dues

CST & VAT : Where assessee had failed to submit monthly returns and to make payment of tax due, non-filing of returns and non-payment of tax due was not a technical offence and imposition of penalty under section 45A was justified


Sec. 10(23C): Apart from annual grants, other grants are also relevant to check whole/substantial fu

IT: Word 'wholly or substantially financed by Government' cannot be confined only to annual grants as apart from providing annual grant, if Government grants land, invests money in building and infrastructure and also running educational institution all that has to be taken into consideration to decide whether institution is wholly or substantially financed by Government in order to become eligible to claim exemption under section 10(23C)(iiiab)


Place of issuing notice on dishonour of cheque doesn't confer jurisdiction upon Court to take cogniz

Negotiable Instruments Act : Place of issue of a statutory notice cannot constitute a valid ground for conferring jurisdiction upon Court concerned to take cognizance of an offence under section 138


TPO couldn't make consulting company a 'comparable' for marketing company for TP adjustments

IT/ILT : Functionally dissimilar companies cannot be selected as comparables


Transportation charges incurred by supplier of LPG would form part of its sale price under Karnataka

CST & VAT : Where assessee issued credit note to purchaser of goods subsequent to date of invoice and claimed deduction of same from taxable turnover stating that it was discount given to purchaser, since discount was given after completion of sale, assessee was not entitled to deduction


SC : National Tax Tribunal Act held as unconstitutional; CS ineligible to appear before National Tax

IT : SC : National Tax Tribunal Act unconstitutional; Company Secretaries ineligible to represent parties in appeal before NTT


Now the Madras High Court directs CBDT to extend the due date for filing return to November 30, 2014

IT/ILT : Now the Madras High Court directs CBDT to extend the due date for filing return to November 30, 2014


Palm Oil Export Battle To Dominate India Conference

Competing efforts by leading palm oil producers Indonesia and Malaysia to raise exports of the tropical oil and the impact of falling crude oil prices on biodiesel demand will be the primary focus of an industry conference in India this week.



At the Globoil India 2014 meeting that starts in Mumbai on Friday, edible oil traders and analysts are also likely to discuss rising palm oil inventories and an expected bumper US soybean crop, and the combined impact on palm oil prices that dropped to a five-year low early this month.



"The market is oversupplied. Industry officials are keen to know the impact of competition between Indonesia and Malaysia to export more palm oil by reducing export taxes," said B.V. Mehta, executive director of the Mumbai-based industry body Solvent Extractors' Association of India (SEA).



Malaysia, the world's second biggest palm oil producer, has allowed duty free exports of crude palm oil for September and October, and rival top producer Indonesia is likely to respond with the same export incentive from October.



"I don't think anyone would be bullish at the conference," said a Mumbai-based dealer with a global trading firm.



Both Malaysia and neighbour Indonesia set export taxes on a monthly basis. Prior to its announcement, Malaysia's export duty for crude palm oil was set at 4.5 per cent for September, down from 5.0 per cent in August. Indonesia set its September rate at 9 per cent compared to 10.5 per cent in August.



The competition between the producers could depress palm oil prices and make it more attractive over other edible oils like those from soybeans and sunflowers, said the Mumbai-based dealer.



"Indian and Chinese importers ... are getting edible oils at lower prices during their peak consumption period," the dealer said.



India's vegetable oil imports typically peak between August and October when Indians celebrate a number of festivals and consumption of fried and calorie-laden food rises.



Top edible oil importer India shipped in a record 1.3 million tonnes of vegetable oils in August.With Brent crude falling to its lowest in more than two years this week, traders and analysts will also be looking for any clues to the impact on biodiesel demand, said Faiyaz Hudani, associate vice president at Kotak Commodity Services.After hitting a five-year low at 1,914 ringgit on Sept. 2, palm oil futures have climbed back to 2,193 ringgit on Thursday.


Source:- economictimes.indiatimes.com





Norway Sees Potential In Fish Exports To India

With over one billion people and an economy in expansion, the Norwegian Seafood Council sees an increased opportunity for selling fish to India.


"Norway currently has no free trade agreement with India, but we see the potential for it to fall into place," said Ingelill Jacobsen, Norwegian Seafood Council.


From 24 to 31 October, the Norwegian Seafood Council will hold a seminar and reception in New Delhi and Mumbai.


The aim is to inform Norwegian exporters about opportunities in the market but also let the Indian players get better acquainted with Norwegian seafood.


Several regions in Asia are experiencing rapid economic growth as well as population growth. India is the world's second most populous country with a population of about 1.22 billion people.


"There is a market with great potential. It is also a country with many vegetarians, and among these there are many who eat seafood. We therefore believe there are good opportunities in this market," said Mr Jacobsen.


"Foreign retailers have not been allowed to establish themselves here, but we think we will. For the time being we will concentrate on two of the country's most populous cities, New Delhi and Mumbai."Doing business in India requires cultural and social understanding.


"We will therefore leave the Norwegian players to get an analysis of the market, but also to learn from the experiences of others about what is required in this market. We also want them to learn a little about Indian traditions so that they are given the chance to see how the Norwegian seafood can fit in.


Source:- thefishsite.com





SC : Claim of 'BSE', being secured creditor of defaulting member, had priority over income-tax dues

CL : By virtue of lien on securities under rule 43 of Stock Exchange Rules, Stock Exchange, being a secured creditor would have priority over Government dues and, therefore, if a member of a Stock Exchange was declared a defaulter, Income-tax Department would not have priority over all debts owed by defaulter member


HC follows SC's ruling in Sandvik's case; directs revenue to pay compensation if payment of interest

IT : If tax, interest, penalty, etc., has been collected in excess and it is withheld beyond permissible period under Act, Revenue should compensate for same


Rway Sees Potential In Fish Exports To India

With over one billion people and an economy in expansion, the Norwegian Seafood Council sees an increased opportunity for selling fish to India.


"Norway currently has no free trade agreement with India, but we see the potential for it to fall into place," said Ingelill Jacobsen, Norwegian Seafood Council.


From 24 to 31 October, the Norwegian Seafood Council will hold a seminar and reception in New Delhi and Mumbai.


The aim is to inform Norwegian exporters about opportunities in the market but also let the Indian players get better acquainted with Norwegian seafood.


Several regions in Asia are experiencing rapid economic growth as well as population growth. India is the world's second most populous country with a population of about 1.22 billion people.


"There is a market with great potential. It is also a country with many vegetarians, and among these there are many who eat seafood. We therefore believe there are good opportunities in this market," said Mr Jacobsen.


"Foreign retailers have not been allowed to establish themselves here, but we think we will. For the time being we will concentrate on two of the country's most populous cities, New Delhi and Mumbai."Doing business in India requires cultural and social understanding.


"We will therefore leave the Norwegian players to get an analysis of the market, but also to learn from the experiences of others about what is required in this market. We also want them to learn a little about Indian traditions so that they are given the chance to see how the Norwegian seafood can fit in.


Source:- thefishsite.com





Frozen Shrimp Now Accounts For 78% Of The Total Seafood Consignments From India

Global shortage of farmed shrimp continues to boost India's seafood export prospects. After crossing the Rs30,000-crore mark last year, the shipments have shown nearly 30% rise till the end of July with vannamei shrimp bringing in a significant part of the revenue.



Frozen shrimp now accounts for 78% of the total seafood consignments from India, up from 71% in the same period last year. Another notable feature is that exports to the European Union and Middle East have increased during four months.



Frozen shrimp now accounts for 78% of the total seafood consignments from IndiaSeafood exports from India totalled 2,41,600 tonne valued at Rs9,345 crore during the period April-July 2014. Though there is only a marginal increase in quantity, the value is up by 29%, indicating good prices for Indian shrimps.



"Middle East countries have been buying lot of Indian seafood, particularly Egypt, Saudi Arabia and UAE. There has been failure of white shrimp crop in Saudi Arabia," said Anwar Hashim, managing director of Abad Fisheries, a leading exporter. The prices of Indian shrimp, he said, increased from Rs500 to Rs650 per kg , though it has come down in the recent weeks.



Indian aquaculture farms are breeding more shrimps to meet the demand, encouraged by good prices for shrimps in the global market. The shrimp farms in South East Asia are gradually recovering after the early mortality syndrome (EMS) disease attack.



"Last year our production was around 3 lakh tonne. This year it could be 25,000 tonne more as the demand is still good," said L Satyanarayana, president of All India Shrimp Hatcheries Association. The farming is mainly concentrated in the eastern parts of the country mainly in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Orissa and West Bengal. It is also picking up in Gujarat.



Thailand is the main producer of cultured shrimp in the world. But after the disease attack, the production has dropped from an average 6 lakh tonne to 2.6 lakh tonne. "There is still a shortage of around 3.4 lakh tonne," Satyanarayana said.



Globefish, a unit of FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department says in its reports that Indian farmers have been holding stocks in their ponds from mid-June onwards following renewed import inquiries from the US and European Union. The farms are moving away from black tiger variety of shrimp in favour of vannamei.According to the report, there has been a 40% reduction in black tiger shrimp production in India in 2013.


Source:- economictimes.indiatimes.com





India Has Potential To Become World's Biggest Car Maker Kenichi Ayukawa, Maruti Suzuki

Stating India has the potential to become the biggest car manufacturer of the world, country's top car maker Maruti Suzuki today hoped factors adversely affecting competitiveness of manufacturing will be removed quickly, in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call to make India a manufacturing hub.



"Costs of production in India increase because of various government policies, procedures, regulations and the way some of the laws are implemented," said Kenichi Ayukawa, Managing Director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, at the 'Make in India' campaign.



Stating that India is not the easiest country to do business in, he said, "We are fully confident that, under the Make in India programme of the Prime Minister, factors that adversely affect the competitiveness of manufacturing will now be removed quickly," he said adding India will then become one of the most competitive manufacturing countries in the world.



Welcoming Modi's call to 'Make in India', he said Maruti Suzuki was amongst the very first multi-national corporation companies to start a major manufacturing operation in India in 1983.



"Over 30 years ago, Osamu Suzuki, Chairman, Suzuki Motor Corporation, recognised the potential of India, both as a market and as a country where high quality manufacturing was possible," he said, adding globally, Maruti Suzuki is the most successful venture of Suzuki group.



He said the cars Maruti Suzuki makes in India are lower in costs than similar products made by it in other parts of the world.



This enabled Maruti to start exporting cars in 1986 to several countries including western Europe. Suzuki Japan made India its manufacturing hub for compact car Zen in 1994 for export to European countries.



Since 1983, Maruti has been making special efforts to develop a vibrant component manufacturing industry in India.



"This, along with the rapidly growing car production and demand, with high local content, and low costs, was largely responsible for all the major car manufacturers of the world establishing production facilities in India," he said.



The growth of the car industry also attracted investments from a large number of global automotive component manufacturers.



"Our experience with Indian managers, engineers and work force, despite an exception in 2012, has been excellent. We have been able to effectively implement work practices based on our Japanese experience, but suitably modified for India, that have resulted in continuous growth of productivity, improvements in quality and lower costs," he said.



India continues to be a major exporter of Suzuki branded cars. Other car manufacturers have also made India one of their manufacturing hubs for exports. Car exports from India have reached the levels of around six lakh units annually."This has been achieved despite the well recognised fact that India is not the easiest country to do business .


Source:-economictimes.indiatimes.com





Rupee Breaches 61 Against Dollar Tracking Weak Stock Market

The Indian rupee was trading weak against the US dollar on Thursday afternoon, as banks sold the local currency noting the weakness in the local stock market and on doubts about the investment sentiment in India following the de-allocation of coal mines by the Supreme Court on Wednesday.


However, dollar sales by state-owned banks likely on behalf of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) prevented the rupee from falling sharply.

At 1.55pm, the home currency was trading at 61.09, down 0.20% from its previous close of 60.97. It had opened at 60.96 and touched a low of 61.12. India’s benchmark index, Sensex was trading at 26,582.60 points on BSE, down 0.61%.

“The impact is sentimental. Local equities are down and that has spilled over to the rupee. Add to that the fact that the dollar is also stronger overseas has kept the rupee under pressure. If not for dollar sales by state-owned banks, the Indian currency could have fallen more sharply,” said a dealer with a French bank.


The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 8.476%, compared with its Wednesday’s close of 8.482%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.Since the beginning of this year, the rupee has gained 1.14%, while foreign institutional investors have bought $14.02 billion from local equity markets.The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 85.395, down 0.42% from the previous close of 85.037.


Source:- livemint.com





Sec. 263 revision was valid if AO had wrongly taken threshold limit for TDS exemption as standard de

IT : Where Assessing Officer passed assessment order taking a view that assessee was not liable to deduct tax at source under section 194C where single payment to transport contractors did not exceed Rs. 20,000, Commissioner, in exercise of revisional power, rightly set aside assessment holding that bifurcation of payments made by assessee was not permissible


Disclosure of income in belated return not to be held as undisclosed even if return was filed after

IT: Where regular return was filed within time prescribed under section 139(4) merely, because it was filed after date of search, income therein could not be treated as undisclosed income


Department can’t initiate penalty proceedings for tax evasions after five years from the relevant da

Excise & Customs : Penalty proceedings must be initiated within a reasonable period and said reasonable period is 5 years from relevant date; thereafter, no penalty proceedings can be initiated


Amendments to sec. 40(a)(ia) allowing deduction on payment of TDS of any month before due date has r

IT : Amendment to section 40(a)(ia) by Finance Act, 2010, which comes into effect from 1-4-2010 is curative in nature and, thus, it has retrospective operation


Steel wire rope, MS plates used directly/indirectly in manufacture of aluminium articles are eligibl

Cenvat Credit : Goods used directly or indirectly in manufacture of final product are eligible for credit; hence, for manufacturer of Aluminium Articles, Alfoc Power; Steel Wire rope; MS Plates and Welding electrodes; Oxygen Gas; Aluminium Welding wire; and PVC Pipes, etc. are eligible for credit


No reassessment if property alleged to have been acquired out of undisclosed income didn’t relate to

IT : Where in course of proceedings relating to reopening of assessment, first respondent passed on order accepting assessee's objection that there was no evidence to connect him with certain properties allegedly acquired out of undisclosed income, he should have dropped reassessment proceedings and, therefore, impugned letter issued by first respondent calling upon assesee to avail of opportunity to cross examine complainant i.e. person, who was author of tax evasion petition, deserved to be qu


Chemicals and dyes used for dying/colouring of fabric under job work weren’t taxable in hands of ass

CST & VAT : Where assessee was also getting job work done on fabric and after processing, which included colouring, dyeing, etc., fabric was returned to customer, chemicals and dyes used in job work were not liable to tax in hands of assessee


Engagement of vendors for e-procurement solutions without bidding process wasn't an abuse of dominan

Competition Law: Engagement of Central Government entities for providing e-procurement solutions in various government departments, PSU's etc., without going through bidding process is not abuse of dominant position by Central Government