Admittedly, these two writ petitions have been filed challenging the orders passed by the respondent SEBI under Sections 11 and 11(b) of the Act 15 of 1992 against the company as well as Mr. A. Venkatramani, the promoter. As against that, an appeal has to be filed before the Appellate Tribunal. Further Section 29 of the Act, 1992, enables the Government to make Rules for carrying out the purposes of the Act and the notification issued by the Central Government under Rule 5(2) is valid in law.
In the present case, the foundation is the Consultancy Agreement between the parties, where it was agreed, as per the Petitioner, that the Petitioner would get a guaranteed fee of Rs. 50 lacs, which was payable on a monthly basis at the rate of Rs. 3 lacs per month, at least for 12 months, or at the time when the investment size is achieved and/or if the agreement is revoked at Samira’s violation, whichever is earlier, the outstanding balance will be paid as a lump sum. As per the Petitioner, after 12 months from the date of agreement i.e. 22.10.2007, apart from lump sum amount of Rs. 5 lacs, the amount claimed, according to this agreement, was outstanding. This clause itself cannot be read in isolation. The revised clause and the obligation on the part of the Petitioner as referred in other part of the Agreement, just cannot be overlooked. There are no averments to show that they have complied with their part in full and, therefore, they are entitled to claim this full consultancy guaranteed amount as agreed. The Respondent/company in the affidavit has denied and made a positive statement that there were no full compliances by the Petitioner.
After the company petition before the Bombay High Court was withdrawn on 11th November, 2011, notice under section 434(1)(a) was issued on 15th December, 2011 at the registered office of the respondent company. Section 434(1)(a) requires issue of 21 days notice for deeming fiction created by the provision to apply. However, section 434(1)(a) cannot be strictly equated with mandatory statutory notice like the one required under section 80 of the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908, when a suit is to be filed against the Government. For initiating civil proceedings for recovery of a debt, no notice under section 434(1)(a) is required to be issued.
We hold that the impugned circular dated 1.1.2013 obligating the concerned authorities to initiate recovery proceedings on the expiry of period as mentioned therein so far as it relates to the situations where appeals with stay applications have been filed, but no stay had been granted and the stay applications had been kept pending for reasons not attributable in any manner whatsoever to the petitioners/assessees and resultantly, no interim relief had been granted, is non est.
Observations of the assessing officer to the effect that no one makes a loss in real estate business and that the market perceptions indicate that the prices of the immoveable properties are always on the upward trend. These observations have, inter alia, formed the basis of the additions made by the assessing officer. It was even suggested before us on behalf of the revenue that it is a “notorious practice” prevailing in real estate circles that in all property transactions there is non-disclosure of the full consideration. As pointed out earlier, this cannot per se constitute the basis of the addition, though we must hasten to add that it can very well be a starting point for further investigation. In Lalchand Bhagat Ambica Ram v. CIT [1959] 37 ITR 288, the Supreme Court disapproved the practice of making additions in the assessment on mere suspicion and surmises or by taking note of the “notorious practice” prevailing in trade circles.
If income arises out of the transfer of a long term capital asset being an equity share in a listed company, the said income would be exempt under section 10(38) of the said Act. There is no doubt that the shares of Goodyear India Limited are listed shares and therefore even if a consideration had been charged for the transfer of the 74% share, the income arising therefrom would be exempt by virtue of the provisions of section 10(38) of the said Act.
As far as the assessee’s claim on payment of additional interest is concerned, while confirming the Assessing Officer’s view that the payments were contrary to the RBI guidelines, the First Appellate Authority as well as the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal held that all that the assessee could pay as per the RBI guidelines was 8% interest only and any amount paid over and above the permissible limit was against the public policy, hence, hit by Explanation 237 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. As far as this line of reasoning is concerned, we find from the Circular issued by the RBI that there is ceiling on interest payable in current account/saving bank account and discretion is available on interest to be paid on term deposits. The circular reads as under:-
The assessee disclosed capital gain and claimed exemption under section 54F on the ground that entire sale proceeds were invested in construction of house property. In the original assessment proceedings, the Assessing Officer, denied exemption on ground that construction of house property was complete before the date of transfer of shares.
This Court in a series of decisions, has consistently taken a view that the creditors of the transferee Company would have no right to intervene in the petition filed by the transferor Company under Section 391 of the Companies Act. Learned Single Judge of this Court in the case of Industrial Credit & Investment Corpn. of India Ltd. (supra)
The land in question abuts National Highway 73 and that the acquired land is extensively developed area and is near to Government College, Saket Hospital, District Headquarters/Mini Secretariat, General Hospital, Panchkula than Sectors 24 to 28, Panchkula for which land was acquired in the year 1989. Thus, the land acquired in 1995 was an urban land in close proximity with District Headquarter and much closer to the District Headquarter than the land of the assessee itself acquired in the year 1989.
