JCIT (OSD) Vs DLF Homes Panchkula Pvt. Ltd. (Supreme Court of India)
Summary: The Supreme Court dismissed the Revenue’s petitions concerning External Development Charges (EDC) paid by real-estate developers to the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA), now Haryana Shahari Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP).
The Supreme Court condoned the delay and, following its earlier orders in Principal Commissioner of Income Tax (Central III) and Anr. v. BPTP Limited, dated 16.12.2020, and Joint Commissioner of Income Tax v. M/s Experion Developers Pvt. Ltd., dated 12.02.2024, dismissed the petitions.
Read Delhi HC Judgment in this case: Delhi HC Sets Aside TDS Demands on External Development Charges Paid to HUDA
The underlying Delhi High Court judgment had held that EDC could not be characterised as “rent” for the purposes of Section 194-I of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The Court rejected the Revenue’s attempt to sustain the TDS demand by contending that the Assessing Officer had merely referred to an incorrect statutory provision.
Facts of the Case
The petitioners were engaged in the business of real-estate development. They had entered into agreements with the State Government of Haryana, acting through the Director General, Town & Country Planning, for developing an IT Park and a Group Housing Colony.
