ITAT condoned a 106-day delay considering the assessees senior citizen status and bona fide reasons. On merits, it restored the capital gains issue to the Assessing Officer for de novo verification.
The Tribunal held that payment towards traffic violation is hit by Explanation 1 to Section 37(1) and not deductible. Though books were rightly rejected, estimation at 8% was moderated to 5% in the interest of justice.
The Tribunal deleted the addition sustained by the CIT(A) as it was based solely on digital data found from a third party. It reiterated that suspicion or extrapolation without direct evidence cannot sustain tax additions.
The Tribunal held that mere transfer of funds to a state undertaking does not shift statutory TDS liability. Without proof of lawful discharge of TDS, penalty was sustained
The Tribunal held that denial of India–USA DTAA rates during processing under Section 143(1) was unjustified. It observed that Form 10F facilitates verification and does not create the right, making delayed compliance curable.
ITAT clarified that a statement recorded during search does not automatically become incriminating material. Without supporting documentary evidence, additions under Section 69A cannot survive.
The Tribunal emphasized that documentary evidence including bank statements and lender confirmations sufficiently explained the disputed credits. It held that no addition for unexplained money was warranted.
While condoning procedural delay, the Tribunal emphasized fairness and allowed substantial relief in a capital gains computation dispute. It directed recalculation of indexed cost after permitting 80% of claimed improvement expenses.
The Tribunal held that when sales are undisputed and books of account remain intact, purchase additions require stronger evidence. In the absence of contrary material, the ₹35.48 lakh disallowance was deleted.
Although stamp law generally places registration costs on buyers, the Tribunal held that parties may contract otherwise. Since the sale deed clearly assigned the burden to the seller, the ₹5.47 lakh disallowance was deleted.
