Commissioner of Income Tax-1, Visakhapatnam V. M/s. Premier Engieering Syndicate

ITTA/620/2013

AI Insights

The case revolves around the entitlement of M/s. Premier Engineering Syndicate to claim deductions under Section 80IB(10) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, for a project completed on 13.7.2009. The primary legal contention was whether the information obtained through the Right to Information Act, 2005, which served as a de facto completion certificate, was sufficient for the deduction claim in the absence of a formal completion certificate from municipal authorities. The Income Tax Department appealed against the Tribunal's decision, which had accepted the RTI response as valid evidence of project completion. The High Court upheld the Tribunal's decision, emphasizing the admissibility of RTI-derived information as secondary evidence under the Evidence Act.

• Counselvise Citation: [2014] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 718931 (HC-ANDHRA_PRADESH)
• Appeal Type: Others
• Pronouncement Date: 13-03-2014
• Assessment Year: misc
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act, 1961, Right to Information Act, 2005, Indian Evidence Act, 1872
• Result in Favour of: Others
• Court: HIGH COURT
• Keywords: Completion certificate; Deduction; Public document; Right to Information; Secondary evidence
• Section: 80IB(10); 65; 65(F)

Judgement Text

"THE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI KALYAN JYOTI SENGUPTA AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR I.T.T.A.No.620 of 2013 DATED:13.3.2014 Between: Commissioner of Income Tax-I, Visakhapatnam. … Appellant And M/s. Premier Engineering Syndicate, Visakhapatnam. ….Respondent THE HON’BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE SRI KALYAN JYOTI SENGUPTA AND THE HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE SANJAY KUMAR I.T.T.A.No.620 of 2013 Judgment: (per the Hon’ble the Chief Justice Sri Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta) This appeal is sought to be preferred and admitted against the judgment and order of the learned Tribunal dated 19.10.2010 on the following suggested questions of law: a) Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is justified in holding that the assessee is entitled to the benefit of deduction U/s. 80IB(10) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 in spite of non-production of completion certificate from the Municipal Authorities ? b) Whether on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Appellate Tribunal is correct in proceeding on the premise that the reply dt. 13.7.2009 obtained by the assessee under Right to Information Act, answers the description of completion certificate, within the meaning of Explanation to Section 80IB (10)(a) of the Income Tax Act, 1961. c) Whether the assessee is entitled to claim the benefit of deduction under Section 80IB(10) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 in the face of the circumstance that Project was completed on 13.7.2009, as is evidenced by the communication of the Municipality dt. 13.7.2009. After hearing the learned counsel for the appellant and after going through the impugned judgment and order of the learned Tribunal, we find that the learned Tribunal has correctly held that the information in writing received under the Right to Information Act, 2005 (for short ‘the R.T.I. Act’) was admissible in evidence and this can be relied on. According to us, the original records containing the information as to the date of completion of the project are lying with the Municipal Authority, who is not a party to the proceedings nor an assessee. This information supplied by the aforesaid authority under the R.T.I. Act is acceptable and admissible under Section 65 of the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 (for short ‘the Evidence Act’). The relevant provision of Section 65 of the Evidence Act is as follows: Section 65: Cases in which secondary evidence relating to documents may be given:- Secondary evidence may be given of the existence, condition or contents of a document in the following cases. (e) When the original is a public document within the meaning of Section 74. Now, under the R.T.I. Act, any information, contained in a document, which is to be supplied thereunder by any authority, such document can be said to be a public document within the meaning as above. More over, the aforesaid document will also be covered by the provisions of Section 65(f) of the Evidence Act, which reads as follows: When the original is a document of which a certified copy is permitted by this Act, or by any other Law in force in India, to be given in evidence;. In any view of the matter, the assessee has discharged the initial burden by producing the aforesaid document to prove the date of completion of the project and if the Revenue would want to rebut it, it should have produced counter evidence to disprove the same. Nothing is to be decided in this matter. The appeal is accordingly dismissed. Consequently, the miscellaneous petitions, if any pending, shall stand dismissed. No costs. __________________ K.J. SENGUPTA, CJ _________________ SANJAY KUMAR, J 13th March, 2014 PNB "