ITO, HANUMANGARH V. M/s. Hanumangarh Sahakari Bhumi Vikas Bank Ltd., HANUMANGARH JUNCTION

ITA 68/JODH/2014

• Counselvise Citation: 6823314 RSA 2014
• Duration Of Justice: 7 month(s) 19 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 24-09-2014
• Appeal Filed By: Department
• Order Result: Dismissed
• Bench Allotted: DB
• Next Hearing Date: 10-09-2014
• Assessment Year: 2010-2011
• Appeal Filed On: 05-02-2014
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Assessee Lawyers: JINENDRA KOCHAR; P K KOCHAR
• Keywords: Rule of consistency
• Section: 143(3)

Judgement Text

IN THE INCOMETAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL JODHPUR BENCH: J ODHPUR ( BEFORE SHRI H ARI OM MARATHA, JUDICIAL MEMBER AND SHRI N.K. SAINI, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER ) I.T.A. NO. 68 /JODH/201 4 (A.Y. 2010 - 1 1) ITO, VS M/S. HANUMANGARH SAHAKARI WARD - 1, BHUMI VIKAS BANK LTD., HANUMANGARH. HANUMANGARH. PAN NO. AAAJH0405Q I.T.A. NO. 341/JODH/2013 (A.Y. 2009 - 10) HANUMANGARH KENDRIYA VS ACIT, RANGE - II, SAHAKARI BANK LIMITED, BIKANER. C/O. P.K. KOCHAR & CO., (CA), 521 - GENERAL MARKET, HOSPITAL ROAD, HANUM ANGARH TOWN PAN NO. AAAJH0302C (APPELLANT) (RESPONDENT) ASSESSEE BY : - SHRI P.K. KOCHAR , AND SHRI JINENDRA KOCHAR . DEPARTMENT BY : - SHRI MAHESH KUMAR - D.R. DATE OF HEARING : 10 /0 9 /201 4 DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT : 24 / 0 9 /2014 2 O R D E R P E R HARI OM MARATHA, J.M. : TH E REVENUE HAS FILED APPEAL FOR A.Y. 2010 - 11 WHICH IS DIRECTED AGAINST THE ORDER OF LD. CIT(A), DATED 22.11.2013. FOR A.Y. 2009 - 10 ONLY , THE ASSESSEE HAS FILED APPEAL AGAINST THE ORDER OF LD. CIT(A) DATED 12. 03.2013. SINCE BOTH THE APPEALS PERTAIN TO SAME ASSESSEE AND IDENTICAL ISSUE S ARE INVOLVED THEREIN , THESE ARE BEING DISPOSED OF BY THIS COMMON ORDER FOR THE SAKE OF CONVENIENCE AND BREVITY. 2. BRIEFLY STATED, THE FACTS OF THE CASE ARE THAT THE ASSESSEE, NAMELY, M/S. HANUMANGARH SAHAKARI BHUMI VIKAS B ANK LIMITED, HANUMANGARH, IS A C O - OPERATIVE CREDIT SOCIETY IN TERMS OF BANKING REGULATION ACT, 1949, AND IS ENGAGED IN PROVIDING CREDIT FACILITIES TO ITS MEMBERS. IT IS NOT A BANK AS IT IS NOT ENGAGED IN CARR YING ON THE BUSINESS OF BANKING. IT IS CLAIMED THAT THE ASSESSEE IS NEITHER A PRIMARY AGRICULTURAL CREDIT SOCIETY NOR A PRIMARY AGRICULTURAL AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT BANK, AS IT DOES NOT CARRY ON THE BUSINESS OF BANKING TAKING THE DEPOSITS AND DOING OTHER BAN KING ACTIVITIES. FOR THE A.Y. 2010 - 11, THE ASSESSEE FIELD ITS RETURN OF INCOME (ROI) DECLARING N I L INCOME AFTER CLAIMING DEDUCTION OF RS. 4,03,6,695/ - U/S 80P(2)(A)(I) OF 3 THE INCOME TAX ACT, 1961, THE ACT FOR SHORT. IN THE PAST , THE ASSESSEE CLAIMED AND GOT SIMILAR DEDUCTION EVEN IN ASSESSMENT ORDERS FRAMED U/S 143(3) OF THE ACT. HOWEVER, THE A.O. HAS TREATED THE ASSESSEE SOCIETY AS A AGRICULTURAL RURAL DEVELOPMENT BANK AND AFTER APPLYING EXPLANATION APPENDED TO SECTION 80P(4) OF THE ACT HAS DISALLOWED DE DUCTION OF RS. 40,36,695/ - CLAIMED, AS EXEMPT U/S 80P(2)(A)(I) OF THE ACT. 2.1 AGGRIEVED, THE ASSESSEE PREFERRED APPEAL AND LD. CIT(A) HAS DELETED THE IMPUGNED ADDITION BY FOLLOWING THE PRINCIPLE OF CONSISTENCY AND SAME ORDER OF JODHPUR BENCH AND OTHERS. THE REVENUE BEING AGGRIEVED H AS FILED THIS APP EAL BY RAISING THE FOLLOWING GROUND : - ON THE FACTS AND IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE THE LD. CIT(A) HAS ERRED IN ALLOWING RELIEF OF RS.40,36,695/ - DISALLOWED U/S 80P(2)(A)(I) OF THE I.T. ACT, 1961. 2.2 IN A.Y. 2009 - 10, THE ASSESSEE HAS RAISED THE FOLLOWING GROUNDS: 1 ON THE FACTS AND IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF THE CASE THE LD. ACIT HAS ERRED IN DENYING THE CLAIM OF DEDUCTION U/S 80P(2)(D) OF THE I.T. ACT. THE ISSUE BEFORE YOUR HONOUR ARE: - 4 1. WHETHER THERE I S ANY RESTRICTION IN THE ACT THAT A CO - OPERATIVE SOCIETY CAN NOT ENGAGE ITSELF IN MORE THAN ONE ACTIVITY AS ENUMERATED IN SECTION 80P(2)? IF NOT, W HETHER A CO - OPERATIVE SOCIETY WHICH IS DOING THE BUSINESS OF BANKING (CALLED AS CO - OPERATIVE BANK) CAN INVES T ITS SURPLUS FUND IN ANOTHER CO - OPERATIVE SOCIETIES IN ORDER TO EARN INTEREST/ DIVIDEND AND CAN SHOW THE SAME AS INCOME FROM OTHER SOURCES AND CAN BECOMES ELIGIBLE FOR DEDUCTION U/S 80P(2)(D)? 2. WHETHER THE WORDS THIS SECTION IN RELATION TO ANY COOPERATIV E BANK USED IN SUB SECTION (4) OF SECTION 80P MEANS WHOLE SECTION 80 P OR 80P(2) (A) (I) ONLY ? THE COMBINATION OF TWO WORDS THIS SECTION AND COOPERATIVE BANK (NOT CO - OPERATIVE SOCIETY) IN SUB SECTION (4) INDICATES APPLICABILITY OF SECTION 80P(2)(A)( I) ONLY. 2.3 WE HAVE HEARD THE RIVAL SUBMISSIONS AND HAVE CAREFULLY EXAMINED THE ENTIRE RECORD. THE LD. D.R. HAS RELIED ON THE ORDER OF JAIPUR BENCH RENDERED IN THE CASE OF KEKRI SAHAKARI BHUMI VIKAS BANK LTD. V S ITO REPORTED IN (2012) 54 SOT 64 (U.R.O.) , A COPY OF WHICH HAS BEEN FILED ON RECORD. WE HAVE CAREFULLY TREADED THROUGH THIS ORDER. IN THAT CASE THE FACTS INDICATED THAT IT WAS INVOLVED IN LENDING ACTIVITIES AND, THEREFORE, THE MATTER WAS RESTORED BACK TO THE FILE OF LD. CIT(A). THEREFORE, NO SPEC IFIC RATIO DECIDENDI IS REVEALED FROM THIS ORDER. TO THE CONTRARY, APART FROM ASSESSEES OWN CASE ORDERS IN OTHER SIMILAR 5 CASES PASSED BY THIS VERY BENCH ARE AVAILABLE. IN THE CASE OF JODHPUR SAHAKARI BHOOMI VIKAS BA NK LTD., MANDORE ROAD, JODHPUR V S ITO IN ITA NO. 78/JODH/2014 A.Y. 2009 - 10, ORDER DATED 05.08.2014, (COPY ON RECORD), THE VIEW FAVOURABLE TO THE ASSESSEE HAS BEEN TAKEN. IN ASSESSEES OWN CASE FOR OTHER YEARS THE A.O. HIMSELF HAS ALLOWED SIMILAR CLAIM. ACCORDINGLY, WE ALLOW ASSESSEES CLAIM, BY FOLLOWING OUR EARLIER ORDERS AND IN THE CONSISTENCY OF FINDING BY THE A.O. AND DISMISS REVENUES APPEAL. 3. SINCE IN ASSESSEES APPEAL FILED FOR A.Y. 2009 - 10 AGAINST THE ORDER OF THE LD. CIT(A) DATED 12.3.2013, SIMILAR FACTS ARE THERE, THE VIEW TAKEN BY THE LD. CIT(A) HAS TO BE REVERSED ON FACTS. THEREFORE, THE ASSESSEE SUCCEEDS IN ITS APPEAL. 4. IN THE RESULT, THE APPEAL OF THE REVENUE IN ITA NO. 68/JODH/2014 IS DISMISSED AND THE APPEAL OF THE ASSESSEE IN ITA NO. 341/JODH/2013 (A.Y. 2009 - 10) IS ALLOWED . ORDER PRONOUNCED IN THE COURT ON 24 TH SEPTEMBER , 2014. SD/ - SD/ - (N.K.SAINI) [HARI OM MARATHA] ACCOUNTANT MEMBER JUDICIAL MEMBER DATED : 24 TH SEPTEMBER , 2014 6 VL/ - CO PY TO: 1. THE APPELLANT 2. THE RESPONDENT 3. THE CIT BY ORDER 4. THE CIT(A) 5. THE DR SENIOR PRIVATE SECRETARY ITAT, JODHPUR