HC lashes out on revenue for adjusting refund against outstanding demand without hearing assessee

IT: Where on same date intimation under section 245 was issued and adjustment of refund against outstanding demand was made without giving assessee opportunity of hearing, adjustment order was to be set aside

Exp. on purchase of application software entailing up-gradation of existing system would be revenue

IT : Expenditure incurred for purchasing application software for upgradation of existing computers would be a revenue expenditure

No rectification to tax interest on refund if its taxability under DTAA as interest or as other inco

IT/ILT : Question as to whether interest on refund received by assessee, a USA based company, was taxable under article 11 or article 23 of India-USA DTAA being a debatable one, was beyond scope of proceedings under section 154

Letter declaring petitioner as highest bidder in auction sale wasn't a confirmation letter of bid, s

SARFAESI: Letter informing petitioner fact that it was highest bidder in auction sale of mortgaged property was not a letter of confirmation and acceptance of bid, concluding and creating a binding contract

Renting service was liable to ST even if lease agreement was made prior to introduction of ST on suc

Service Tax : 'Daily Market' charges and 'Shop Rent' collected by municipalities are liable to service tax under 'renting of immovable property services', even if lease agreement were entered into prior to introduction of service tax itself on said services

Indian Mango Exporters Tighten Pest Controls

India has been given the all clear to resume exports of mangoes to the European Union.Shipments were suspended six months ago after some consignments were found to be infested with fruit flies.

But Indian mango exporters have been fighting the ban, arguing that additional pest-control procedures have been put in place.Sameer Hashmi reports from the Ratnagiri region of Maharashtra, in western India.

Source:- bbc.co.uk

Department couldn't demand service tax if it was paid under wrong category

Service Tax : Where service tax has been paid on a service under 'Business Auxiliary Services', department cannot demand service tax on same service classifying same under 'Business Auxiliary Services'

Letter declaring petitioner as highest bidden in auction sale wasn't a confirmation letter of bid, s

SARFAESI: Letter informing petitioner fact that it was highest bidder in auction sale of mortgaged property was not a letter of confirmation and acceptance of bid, concluding and creating a binding contract

Rectification application rightly rejected as applicant didn't attend proceedings even after adjourn

IT : Where assessee filed rectification application against penalty imposed under section 258BFA and sought an adjournment which was granted but on adjourned date he chose not to attend proceedings, assessee's plea of not giving a proper opportunity of hearing was not acceptable

India Govt Hikes Gold And Silver Import Tariff Value

PTI reported that the government today hiked import tariff value on gold to USD 401 per 10 grams and on silver to USD 543 per kg in line with global price trends.

The tariff value on imported gold was at USD 392 per 10 grams and for silver it was at USD 519 per kg in the first fortnight of this month.

The import tariff value is the base price at which customs duty is determined to prevent under-invoicing. It is revised on a fortnightly basis taking into account global prices.

An official statement said that the increase in tariff value on imported gold and silver has been notified by the Central Board of Excise and Customs.

Globally, gold and silver prices continue to be volatile. In New York, gold prices ruling firm at USD 1261 an ounce and silver at around USD 16 per ounce.

Last month, India, the world's largest consumer of gold, imported gold worth USD 1.34 billion, less than one-fourth of USD 5.61 billion in the previous month, notwithstanding the easing of import curbs for the precious metal.

However, gold imports were still higher on a YoY basis by 7.4% from USD 1.25 billion in December 2013.

A recent report commissioned by Wold Gold Council has suggested that India should move beyond import curbs and should come up with a national gold policy to put an estimated 22,000 tonne of idle gold assets into active use.

The report also recommended launch of several investment products, establishment of a Gold Board for managing import-export, develop accredited refineries, drive gold monetisation by incentivising banks and introduce compulsory quality certification of gold.

Source:metal.steelguru.com

Rupee Closes At 61.69 Per Dollar, Up 0.04%

The Indian rupee closed at 61.69 per dollar, up 0.04% from its previous close of 61.71. The partially convertible currency opened at 61.79 a dollar and touched a high and a low of 61.6813 and 61.9063, respectively. Since January this year, the rupee has gained 2.2%.

On Tuesday, Taiwan dollar lost 0.388%, Hong Kong dollar lost 0.013%, Indonesian rupiah gained 0.334%, the Philippine peso fell 0.123%, Malaysian ringgit lost 0.998% and South Korean won shed 0.948%.

The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 92.823, up 0.33% from the previous close of 92.52.

India’s 10-year benchmark bond yield rose to 7.725% from the previous close of 7.724%. It opened at 7.724% and touched a high and a low of 7.733% and 7.715%, respectively.

Source:livemint.com

8,000 Trucks Queue Up Outside Jnpt Terminals

Around 3,000 trucks are stuck at the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT), India's biggest port, following Sunday's violence in which over 28 truck drivers assaulted policemen and torched the vehicles. On Monday, Navi Mumbai police's top officials met the terminal management and agitators to keep things under control.

Though port officials claimed that the high congestion was a result of industrial unrest and violence on Sunday, insiders say long queues of trucks is a daily affair.

The quantum of business loss due to congestion and delays can be ascertained only after knowing the type of cargo in each truck, experts said. But it is expected to run into hundreds of crores of rupees. Congestion is also also leading to business moving to countries like Singapore, Dubai and neighbouring China and Sri Lanka.

JNPT has three terminal operators – Jawaharlal Nehru Port Container Terminal (JNPCT), Nhava Sheva International Container Terminal (NSICT) and Government Terminals India (GTI).

Days before the Sunday's violence at GTI, in which dozens of truck drivers assaulted the police and torched several of their vehicles, the shipping ministry had asked NSICT to make the clearing process online. dna, in its January 7 edition, had reported how thousands of cargo container trucks have been queuing up for over 15 km to get inside NSICT.

The ministry asked NSICT to do away the process of filling Form 13 manually, which is very time-consuming. It set a deadline of February 15. An NSCIT spokesperson did not comment on the ministry directive. Consequently, export goods are moving at a snail's pace, taking over 60 hours to cover one round-trip. An NSCIT executive claimed that there has never been a 15-km long queue and it is about 2.5 km long on an average.

"Due to the snail's pace at which traffic moves, on an average, it takes three days to clear one truck. Due to industrial unrest at GTI and the slow down following Sunday's violence, the number of trucks have gone up to around 3,000. "The unrest from this congestion was bound to spill out into violence, sooner than later," said a leading cargo exporter operating from the port.

Source:- dnaindia.com

CBDT requires business trusts to e-file details of income distributed to unit holders by Nov 30 in f

IT : Income-Tax (First Amendment) Rules, 2015 – Insertion of Rule 12CA and Forms No. 64A and 64B

Trust entitled to exemption even if it charged fee for commercial activity, being incidental to its

IT: Fee charged by trust for processing subsidy applications could not be deemed as commercial receipts if it was incidental to its charitable objectives. Thus, assessee-trust was entitled to exemption under Section 10(23C)(iv).

ITAT set aside order of CIT(A) as he adjudicated appeal in favour of assessee without hearing to AO

IT : Order passed by Commissioner (Appeals) adjudicating appeal in assessee's favour without giving opportunity of being heard to Assessing Officer was contrary to principles of natural justice and provisions of section 250(2)(b)

Now foreign director can authorize practicing CA, CS and CWA to intimate his resignation to ROC

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Appointment And Qualification Of Directors) Amendment Rules, 2015 - Amendment In Rule 16

MCA encourages CSR spending; broadens list of entities through which Cos can undertake CSR activitie

COMPANIES ACT, 2013/INDIAN ACTS & RULES : Companies (Corporate Social Responsibility Policy) Amendment Rules, 2015 - Amendment in Rule 4

Indian Rupee Opens Lower At 61.82 Per Dollar

he Indian rupee opened lower by 11 paise at 61.82 per dollar on Tuesday against previous day's closing value of 61.71 a dollar.

Ashutosh Raina of HDFC Bank said, "The earlier than expected rate cut by Reserve Bank of India (RBI) last week has spurred the Indian markets; with currency, equity and bond markets rallying. The USD / INR currency pair is back in 61-62 range with appreciating bias."

The euro struggles around 11-year lows as investors braced for a crucial meeting later in the week which could see the European Central Bank take its boldest steps to revive the euro zone's economy.

Source:moneycontrol.com

ITAT set aside order of CIT(A) as he adjudicated appeal in favour of assessee without giving opportu

IT : Order passed by Commissioner (Appeals) adjudicating appeal in assessee's favour without giving opportunity of being heard to Assessing Officer was contrary to principles of natural justice and provisions of section 250(2)(b)

Sum paid by newspaper publisher to foreign Co. for installation of mail room equipment wasn't 'FTS'

IT/ILT: Payment for installation/commissioning of complex 'mail room equipment' of newspaper publisher would not be FTS; however, consideration paid for training of employees would be taxable in India as FTS

NBFCs can structure project loans financed to infra and core industries on lines of norms specified

NBFCs : Flexible Structuring Of Long Term Project Loans To Infrastructure And Core Industries

RBI cracks the whip on banks charging high interest rates from old borrowers; unveils new norms for

BANKING : Interest Rates on Advances

Trust entitled to exemption even if it charged fee for commercial activity, being incidental to its

IT: Fee charged by trust for processing subsidy applications could not be deemed as commercial receipts if it was incidental to its charitable objectives. Thus, assessee-trust was entitled to exemption under Section 10(23C)(iv).

CLB couldn't dismiss sale transaction of liquidating-Co's asset if sale was made prior to filing of

CL : Where agreements to sell in respect of plots of company-in-liquidation were executed prior to filing of winding up petition, order of company Judge dismissing application of appellant under section 536 praying for acceptance of sale of those plots to them was to be quashed

HC orders pre-deposit of lesser amount considering stringent financial condition of assessee

CST & VAT: Haryana VAT : Where First Appellate Authority dismissed appeal of assessee on account of non payment of amount of pre deposit, considering stringent financial condition of assessee, it was directed to deposit a certain amount as condition precedent for hearing of appeal before First Appellate Authority

Incidental charges incurred by 'FCI' for procurement of food grains would be includible in its taxab

CST & VAT : Haryana VAT - Incidental charges incurred by FCI for procurement of foodgrains for central pool are includible in taxable turnover

No reassessment to disallow GDR issue exp. under sec. 35D if allowed by AO after proper enquiry; SLP

IT: Where assessee-company had already been allowed deduction in respect of amortization of GDR issue expenses under section 35D for several years and that too after scrutiny assessment, same could not be disallowed in current year by re-assessment

Profit from infrequent share transactions was capital gains if investment was made for capital appre

IT: Where investment in shares was made with an objective of capital appreciation, there were infrequent-handful of transactions and dividend was also earned, profit from sale/purchase of shares was to be treated as capital gain

Tribunal had to demand cash security both under UP VAT Act and as well as Entry Tax Act to release s

CST & VAT : U.P. VAT - For releasing seized goods, apart from demanding cash security under U.P. VAT Act, security was also to be demanded under Entry Tax Act

Conduct of Western Coalfield was abusive as it imposed unfair conditions in fuel supply agreements w

Competition Law : Where Western Coalfields Ltd. and its subsidiaries had imposed unfair conditions in Fuel Supply Agreements (FSAs) with power producers for supply of non-coking coal, they were guilty of contravention of provisions of section 4(2)(a)(i)& (ii)