Income from even an isolated transaction of sale of land can be considered as business income of an assessee though not carrying on real estate business

If  attendant circumstances of the case, the process of purchase of land, conversion thereof and sale, compel to come to the conclusion that the * purchase of land, in itself, was with an intention to sell at a profit in the form of an ‘adventure in the nature of trade’ and hence though it is an isolated’ transaction the income thereon can still be considered as business income.

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Shares activity treated as investment in earlier years cannot be treated as business in subsequent years if facts are the same

The assessee was engaged in two different activities of sale and purchase of shares. The first set of transactions involved investment in shares in which the assessee took delivery of the shares. The second set of transactions involved dealing in shares for business purposes. The assessee was accordingly an investor as well as a dealer.

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Income from Cultivation of parent hybrid seed is non agricultural Income and taxable as business income

The income attributable to the operations of developing/producing breeder seeds or hybrid germplasm or parent hybrid seed containing desired traits cannot be treated as agricultural income and should be treated as business income.

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If letting out could be demonstrated as part of complex commercial activity then rental income is to be assessed as income from business

CASE LAW DETAILS

Decided by: ITAT, `H’ BENCH, MUMBAI,  In The case of: Hiranandani Developers P. Ltd.  v. JCIT, Appeal No.: ITA No. 4117/Mum/2008,
Decided on: October , 2009

RELEVANT PARAGRAPH

10. We have considered the rival submissions and perused the record of the case. From the various case laws cited by Id Counsel for the assessee and discussed in detail by the lower revenue authorities, the following two principles are clearly discemable. Firstly, if the income has been earned by mere exploiting of the ownership of the property, then the same is assessable as income from house property.

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AO not justified in adjustment to a international transaction whose arm’s length character is accepted by Transfer Pricing Officer (TPO)

The Delhi bench of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal (the Tribunal), in the case of Oracle India (P) Ltd. V. ACIT (2009-TIOL-540-ITAT-DEL) (the taxpayer) held that section 40A(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (the Act) overrides the provisions relating to computation of business income only and thus in relation to international transactions, the specific provisions embodied in Chapter X (section 92 – 92F) shall override the general provisions embodied in section 40A of the Act. Hence, once the Transfer Pricing Officer (TPO) accepts the arm’s length character of any international transaction, the Assessing Officer (AO) could not make an adjustment in relation to that transaction under section 40A(2) of the Act.

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Applicability of rule of limitation in respect of appeal filed after an inordinate delay without reasonable cause

Rule of limitation also contains a rule of justice, especially where a person chooses not to take up requisite legal remedies for an inordinate length of time without reasonable cause, the Tribunal should apply the rule of limitation.

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SB rules income from derivative trading in shares prior to financial year 2005-06 is speculation income

This Article summarizes a recent ruling of the Special Bench (SB) of Kolkata Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) in the case of Shree Capital Services Ltd. (Taxpayer) vs. ACIT (ITA No. 1294 (Kol) of 2008) in which the SB held that, prior to financial year 2005-06 (assessment year 2006-07), derivative transactions in shares were covered by the definition of speculative transactions (ST). The SB further held that the exception to the definition of ST, from tax year 2005-06, in respect of eligible derivative transactions carried out on recognized stock exchanges, is not clarificatory in nature and does not have a retrospective effect for earlier years.

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Applicability of year end rate for conversion of business income earned in foreign currency

This article summarizes ruling of the Delhi Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) in the case of DCIT v Dolphin Drilling Pte. Ltd. (Taxpayer) [2009-TIOL-754- 1TAT-DEL]. The ITAT held that the conversion of business income earned in foreign currency into INR, in accordance with Rule 115 (Rule) of the Indian Tax Law (ITL), is to be made by adopting the conversion rate prevailing at the end of the tax year. It also held that the Taxpayer, a company incorporated in Singapore and engaged in the business of hiring out drill-ship in India, is entitled to claim depreciation on the value of the drill-ship.

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