The assessee filed a Nil return after claiming depreciation. The AO disallowed depreciation but still assessed the total income at Rs. Nil. Penalty u/s 271(1)(c) was levied on the disallowance which was deleted by the Tribunal on the ground that as the returned income and the assessed income was Nil, penalty could not be levied. The department filed an appeal before the High Court which was dismissed on the basis that no penalty u/s 271(1)(c) could be levied where the returned and assessed income were Nil.
In an order highly critical of the Income-Tax department, the Bombay High Court has pulled up the department for its “cavalier” approach and on the way tax issues are decided by the department “without application of mind”. The order was pronounced last week by Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice JP Devadhar.
For the second year in a row, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has refused to take responsibility for the Union finance accounts as it has stated in its latest audit findings that government expenditure during 2008-09 is overstated and lacks transparency.
A PIL has been filed in the Bombay high court seeking a CBI probe into alleged tax evasion to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore by companies conducting online lotteries. Maharashtra has enacted the Lottery Tax, which seeks to tax online gambling. As per the law, lottery companies have to pay the tax in advance.
The assessee, a Third Party Administrator (TPA), provided services such as hospitalization services, cashless access services and services in connection with the processing and settlement of claims and making payment to hospitals to holders of health insurance policies issued by insurance companies.
The government plans to tweak laws to facilitate seizure of assets from defaulting borrowers to help banks reduce non-performing assets, which are on the rise after the recent economic downturn.The finance ministry is expected to move a proposal before the cabinet suggesting changes in the Securitisation and Reconstruction Of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act.
As a measure to develop employment opportunities for Chartered Accountants, Committee for Members in Industry (CMII) of ICAI has been successfully organizing placement programmes twice a year for Newly Qualified Chartered Accountants, wherein prospective employers and new members interact and explore the possibility of taking up employment careers in various organisations.
Generally, small businesses face a daunting task in respect of starting and running their business due to various reasons like lack of availability of credit, trained manpower, and access to technology. In order to reduce their administrative burden and compliance costs, there is a special provision under the Income Tax Act, 1961, which help them meet their income-tax compliance under the presumptive taxation regime.
The Centre is finally set to overhaul the over 100-year-old Indian Stamps Act to bring in more consistency among the states in the way the stamps and registration duties are charged by them, besides rationalising rates and curbing evasion. By the move, the Centre intends to re-assert its constitutional right to determine the nature of the levy which is in the concurrent list, but the proceeds of which have conventionally been devolved almost entirely to states.
The Institute of Company Secretaries of India (ICSI) has suggested the Ministry of Corporate affairs to include about 10 secretarial standards in the Companies Bill 2009. The Bill already includes suggestions pertaining to general and board meetings of companies, said Vinayak S Khanvalkar, president, ICSI, at an interactive session here today.
