Monday, 23 February 2015

Employee couldn’t file writ due to excess tax deducted by employer as he could claim its credit in r

IT : Where assessee filed writ petition seeking a direction to respondents to assess him for tax only after deducting monthly instalments recovered from his salary towards housing loan repayment, in view of fact that any excess deduction would be taken care of in regular assessment, relief sought for could not be granted


Construction of electrical substation is a service relating to transmission of electricity; exempt f

Service Tax : Constructing electrical substations on turnkey basis was exempt from service tax under notification no.45/2010-ST, dated 20-7-2010, as it is a service relating to transmission and distribution of electricity


Allowing assessee to pay arrears of tax instalments was valid as it was permitted under Tamil Nadu V

CST & VAT :Tamil Nadu VAT - Where assessee was in arrears of tax and thereupon Assessing Authority initiated coercive proceedings against assessee and on writ petition Single Judge quashed action of Assessing Authority and directed assessee to pay amount in instalments, order passed by Single Judge was subject to provisions of section 42 and was correct


SC : Bank Manager rightly convicted for corruption charges as he had abused his position to benefit

CL : Appellant, an Assistant Manager in securities department of a branch of UCO Bank, was convicted under Prevention of Corruption Act for hatching a criminal conspiracy in facilitating trading of SGL securities to benefit of a famous share broker by abusing his official position and violating banking laws


A software development Co. can’t be a chosen as comparable for a Co. developing software without any

IT/ILT: Assessee that was engaged in software development services on contract basis without having any IP rights in software developed by it was functionally not comparable to a company engaged in developing software tools after enough research and development activity and tools so produced were intellectual property of this company


Bombay High Court levied sec. 234D interest on 'Indian Oil Corporation' following its order of earli

IT : In view of order passed in case of CIT v. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. [2012] 25 taxmann.com 284/210 Taxman 466 (Bom.) interest on excess refund under section 234D was to be charged from assessee


TP adjustment is to be made only in respect of purchases made from AE and not from unrelated parties

IT/ILT : TP adjustment is to be made only in respect of purchases made from AE and not from unrelated parties


India's 2014 Tea Exports Fall 8.1 Pct Y/Y

India's tea exports in 2014 fell 8.1 percent from a year earlier to 201.23 million kg due to poor demand from Bangladesh and Iran, the state run Tea Board said in a statement.


The country's exports to Bangladesh halved on year to 5.86 million kg, while exports to Iran stood at 18.03 million kg, down 22 percent.


In value terms India's exports dropped 13.5 percent from a year earlier to $643.75 million in 2014.


India, the world's second biggest tea producer, exports CTC (crush-tear-curl) grade mainly to Egypt, Pakistan and the UK, and the orthodox variety to Iraq, Iran and Russia.


Solurce:- in.reuters.com





Dsk Motowheels Imports Keeway Superlight 200 In India

DSK Motowheels is planning to introduce a budget bike brand Keeway in India in 2015. The company currently handles the operations of Hyosung and Benelli range of bikes in India. Interestingly, the company has recently imported one unit of the Keeway Superlight 200 in semi-knockdown (SKD) condition, which is expected to be assembled at DSK’s production facility in Wai, Maharashtra. The introduction of bikes as SKD would help the company avoid high taxes on CBU imports, and will allow the maker to price Keeway bikes competitive in the market.


DSK Keeway Superlight 200 The Keeway Superlight 200 is propelled by a 197cc single-cylinder engine that churns out a maximum power output of 12.7bhp and a peak torque of 14Nm. We believe that the Keeway Superlight 200 will be a bad attempt from DSK Motorwheels, as most 200cc bikes in our country are offering power over 20bhp. For example, the upcoming Pulsar 200SS' 200cc engine develops 23.5bhp of power.


The Keeway Superlight 200 is 2260mm long, which surely offers comfortable seats for two adults. The bike has all-black theme, and there are chrome treatment to add some spark to its look. The braking system comprises of disc at the front and drum type brakes at the rear. The twin exhaust tips also add to its style. It is expected that the Keeway Superlight 200 will be priced in the range of Rs. 1.2 lakh to Rs. 1.4 lakh, which is pretty decent. Moreover, DSK will also launch the Keeway Blackster in the country, which is powered by a powerful 249cc engine.


Source:- cartrade.com





In works contract service portion was liable to service tax even prior to 1-6-2007

Service Tax : Service portion in works contract was liable to service tax even prior to 1-6-2007 under 'Commercial or Industrial Construction' or 'Construction of Complex' but said service portion is eligible for abatement and abatement cannot be denied merely because value of free supplies is not included in value of services


Reassessment can be made on basis of info gathered by Commissioner during inspection of assessee's p

CST & VAT: Karnataka VAT - Where Commissioner inspected business premises of assessee and found difference in stock and instead of initiating proceedings under section 52 against assessee, furnished said information to Assessing Authority and thereupon Assessing Authority passed a reassessment order under section 39(1) on assessee, Assessing Authority had power to pass impugned order


Date of receipt of seized material would be considered to count limitation period for issuing sec. 1

IT: Where pursuant to search proceedings in case of 'R', seized material relating to assessee was received on 12-3-2009, in view of proviso to section 153C, notice issued to assessee for assessment years 2001-02 and 2002-03 was barred by limitation


Consumer Durables Makers Demand Massive Duty Cuts On Imports Of Components

Consumer durables makers want the Government to abolish or at least reduce customs duty on imports of components that are used in manufacturing of refrigerators, washing machines, air conditioners and microwaves in the upcoming Budget.


Such a move, they say, will boost the Government's agenda of 'Make in India' since it will lower prices of made-in-India products, making them more competitive compared to imported products.

Read our full coverage on Union Budget


"The Government must reduce customs duty on parts and components of consumer appliances from current 7.5-10 per cent to zero in order to make manufacturing in India more competitive than finished goods imports from countries with free trade agreements," said Kamal Nandi, business head and executive vice president, Godrej Appliances.


The current duty structure goes against the Government's vision of 'Make in India', he added.According to Consumer Electronics and Appliances Manufacturers Association (CEAMA), which represents the roughly Rs 45,000 crore industry, the excise duty on LCD and LED panels, used in making televisions, mobile phones and tablets, should be abolished. Customs duties on components like magnetron, used for producing microwave ovens, and pre-printed steel sheets and other essential parts used in making air conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators need to be lowered as much possible to encourage manufacturing of these appliances in India.


"A reduction in the customs duty on OLED modules and import of parts for manufacturing air conditioners, washing machines and refrigerators is needed," said Manish Sharma, president of CEAMA, and managing director, Panasonic India and south Asia.


At present, most high-end consumer durable products and appliances are imported as finished products because of the non-availability of components in India. According to a study by Corporate Catalyst India, only 30-35% of electronic component required for manufacturing are available locally; semiconductors, a critical component in many electrical appliances, are almost entirely imported.


Similarly, the steel finishes that are used in refrigerators are not available locally, nor are energy-efficient compressors, motors, and some blowing agents and electronic components.


Almost 1.5 to 2 million flat panel TVs in a 6 million unit-strong market are imported annually; the rest, which are assembled in India, have to make do with imported parts. According to industry estimates, almost 65-70% of parts used in locally manufactured white goods come from markets such as China, Japan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Taiwan. Also, high-end products in these categories are completely imported from abroad since manufacturing them locally is not viable.


The same goes for categories such as laptops, tablets, micro-wave ovens and digital cameras, which are all imported as completely built units from abroad.


South Korean consumer electronics company Samsung has said it manufactures all its consumer electronic products locally, barring high-end refrigerators, ultra high-definition TVs, and microwave ovens. However, components for these are imported.


After a long dull period, the festive season proved to be lucrative for the consumer durables sector as it saw an upsurge in sales, driven by higher consumer confidence and a stable rupee, said Sharma. But a recent rollback of the excise duty has led to an increase in product prices passed on to the consumers, thereby adversely impacting their sentiment and leading to a subsequent drop in sales, he said. "We want a reduction in the excise duty to give an overall boost to the sector," he said.


According to CEAMA, introduction of good and services tax (GST) will decrease compliance burden for businesses as well as reduce paperwork and create a seamless pan-India market and also bring down the total incidence of taxes by eliminating cascading effect of taxes on goods and services.


"The budget needs to remove the inefficiencies in the system like inverted duty structures to pave the way for an efficient GST," CEAMA said in a statement.


On the other hand, special addition duty pushes up duty costs for the manufacturing sector, along with countervailing duty to 17% compared with output excise duty of 12%. This is not aligned with the 'Make in India' initiative as it will discourage multinational companies from manufacturing in India, CEAMA noted.


The government, CEAMA said, also needs to promote local manufacturing of components like electron gun, metal parts which are used in manufacturing televisions, and compressors, and electric motors and plastic components for household appliances such as washing machines, refrigerators and air conditioners.


"The Finance Minister needs to remove anomaly in the inverted duty structure for the benefit of manufacturing in India. We hope this budget boosts the growth of consumer durable manufacturing in India with excise duty concession of two per cent withdrawn till the implementation of GST," said an LG official.


"All sectoral indicators have shown that growth has stifled the appliance industry. The increase in excise duty has added to our woes. What we seek from this budget are measures that will stimulate demand," said Shantanu Das Gupta, vice president (corporate affairs & strategy, Asia South) at Whirlpool India.


Source:- business-standard.com





Competition Imports Fiat's 500L In India

One of the car manufacturers based in NCR, has imported a Fiat 500L into India for benchmark testing. We have confirmed from our sources that the car hasn't been imported by Fiat Chrysler India. The Fiat 500L has been imported by one of the manufacturers, which could be a manufacturer that will enter the MPV segment or has entered this segment and is looking to upgrade its product.


The Fiat 500L that has been imported is the 1.3-litre diesel engine that comes mated to a 93bhp, five-speed manual transmission. There are two options in Fiat 500L, one is a five-seater with two rows of seating and the other is three-rows of seating with seven seats. Fiat had plans to introduce the 500L in India, however now at he moment our sources confirm that there are no such plans.


The L in 500L stands for Large/Lounge as it is 4.1 metres, which is similar to the Maruti Suzuki Ertiga in its size. The Fiat 500L is based on the Punto platform, so Fiat can introduce the 500L in India, without heavy investment of a new platform and can be a good product in this segment. The Fiat 500 range also has the 500X, which is placed in-between the 500 and the 500L, however even the 500X is based on the Punto platform, so producing these cars won't be difficult for them. However, at the moment it seems Fiat might be targeting the SUV segments with its Jeep and other products from the Abarth range like the 500.


Source:- business-standard.com





Rupee Strengthens Marginally To 62.21 Per Dollar

The Indian rupee erased most of the morning gains on Monday and was trading marginally higher, tracking losses in the local equity markets.


This week traders are likely to adjust positions according to government announcement in the railway budget on 26 February and the Union Budget on 28 February.


Traders will look for the direction of government policy through these two announcements and will keep an eye on annual economic outlook survey on 27 February.The local unit opened at 62.15 per dollar. At 2.46pm, the home currency was trading at 62.21, up 0.02% from previous close of 62.22.


The Sensex Index fell 0.67%, or 195.81 points, to 29,035.60.The yield on India’s 10-year benchmark bond was trading at 7.692% compared with its Friday’s close of 7.695%. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.


Since the beginning of this year, the rupee has gained 1.4%, while foreign institutional investors have bought $3.12 billion from local equity and $4.9 billion from bond markets.Global rating agency Standard and Poor’s (S&P) on Monday warned that India’s weak fiscal and debt indicators, coupled with the low income levels, “constrain” the sovereign rating.


“India’s low income levels and weak fiscal and debt indicators constrain the country’s credit profile,” S&P said in a note.The dollar index, which measures the US currency’s strength against major currencies, was trading at 94.66, up 0.38% from the previous close of 94.253.


Source:- livemint.com





Gain from share transaction couldn't be taxed as business profit without considering material brough

IT: Without considering period of holding to shares, number of transactions and criteria elucidated in Circular No. 4 of 2007, income from share transactions could not be held as 'business income' as against claim as 'capital gains'


No penalty alleging sec. 269SS violation in absence of any evidence showing acceptance of cash loan

IT : Where Assessing Officer made addition under section 69C in respect of interest paid on loan taken in cash, since revenue had not filed any document or material to show that in fact loan was taken and interest payment was made, impugned addition was to be deleted


For sec. 80-IB relief initial AY would being when hotel starts functioning and not when approval is

IT : For purpose of computing ten assessment years for granting of deduction under section 80-IB, initial assessment year is year in which business of hotel started functioning and not year in which approval was granted by prescribed authority


Addition of ‘speed post’ as valid mode of service is clarificatory and retrospective in nature, rule

Service Tax : Addition of term "speed post" in section 37C of Central Excise Act, 1944 by Finance Act, 2013 is : (a) clarificatory, (b) procedural for purpose of communication of decisions, etc.; (c) curative, as various High Court had already held that service through 'speed post' was a valid mode; hence, same is retrospective


No penalty on wrong availment of exemption if assessee had informed department while claiming exempt

Excise & Customs : Where assessee had informed department about claim of exemption while exercising option to avail exemption, levy of penalty is unwarranted in absence of material fact of suppression


In work contract service portion was liable to service tax even prior to 1-6-2007

Service Tax : Service portion in works contract was liable to service tax even prior to 1-6-2007 under 'Commercial or Industrial Construction' or 'Construction of Complex' but said service portion is eligible for abatement and abatement cannot be denied merely because value of free supplies is not included in value of services


Exp. incurred on issuance of debentures is allowable as revenue exp.

IT : Expenses incurred in issue of debentures could be allowed as revenue expenditure


HC deletes VAT penalty as assessee hadn't claimed any ineligible tax benefit

CST & VAT: Karnataka VAT - Where assessee had purchased goods after payment of input tax and it was not liable to pay any output tax and Assessing Authority imposed penalty upon it under section 72(2) on plea that in return it had put forward a claim for input tax credit to which it was not eligible, since assessee had not claimed any tax benefit, imposition of penalty was not justified