Branded labels - SSI exemption – Metal Labels Vs Paper Labels (See 'DDT')

CBDT, CBEC Chairmen to have minimum one year service - Recruitment Rules amended (See 'Common Basket)

Industrial production shrinks to 2.4% growth rate in November;

Govt issues Ordinance to deploy CISF at pvt estblishments;

Mumbai CBI nabs two Central Excise Inspectors asking for a bribe of Rs 1500 for cancelling excise registration!

Mumbai-type terror attack can be replicated in other parts of world as well: Obama;

Satyam fiasco: Govt more worried about dent to India Inc image overseas;

Income Tax Department denies Sec 11 exemption to CA-regulator ICAI; income from coaching held as business income; Rs 33.47 Cr income to be taxed; Penalty proceedings also initiated ;

ddt 12 Jan.pdf + notification_cbdt.pdf + cbec_notification.pdf +sanction_order.pdf

Up-gradation of Pay Scale of CBDT/CBEC Members – Members and Chairmen are of equal rank and pay;

guest.pdf

Fraud at Satyam: Is this just the tip of an iceberg?

icai story.pdf

Income Tax Department denies Sec 11 exemption to CA-regulator ICAI; income from coaching held as business income; Rs 33.47 Cr income to be taxed; Penalty proceedings also initiated ;

exposure story.pdf

Draft Guidelines on Commercial Real Estate Exposures: RBI proposes to confine 'infastructure lending' for SEZ only to purchase and development of land;

mbuzz0038.pdf

Govt issues Ordinance to deploy CISF at pvt estblishments;

mbuzz0037.pdf

Industrial production shrinks to 2.4% growth rate in November;

mbuzz0036.pdf

Govt says transporters not to be allowed to hold nation to ransom; claims strike called off in Pune, Jaipur and Gurgaon ;

ORDER

cbecorder004_2009.pdf

CBEC issues transfer order of 17 AC/DCs;

CASE LAWS

2009-TIOL-03-SC-IT.pdf + vatika story.pdf

CIT, New Delhi Vs M/s Vatika Township P Ltd (Dated: January 6, 2009)

Income tax - surcharge in block assessment cases - insertion of proviso to Sec 113 vide Finance Act 2002 w.e.f 1.6.2002 - Insertion is prospective or retrospective?

In Suresh N Gupta case the Division Bench held the insertion as curative and clarificatory but in this case the Division Bench takes the view that a tax statute, ordinarily, should not be held to have any retrospective effect - Matter referred to Larger Bench:SUPREME COURT;

2009-TIOL-21-HC-P&H-IT.pdf

CIT, Chandigarh Vs M/s Punjab State Cooperative Bank (Dated : December 16, 2008 )

Income tax - Interest u/s 244A - interest on refund for TDS deposited - AO denies interest on the ground of delay on part of the assessee - Held, since the TDS was deposited in the Govt account and the interest is due on refund, it cannot be denied:PUNJAB AND HARYANA HIGH COURT;

2009-TIOL-25-ITAT-MUM.pdf + delmas story.pdf

M/s Delmas France Vs ACIT, Mumbai (Dated: November 28, 2008)

Income tax - assessee is a tax resident of France - engaged in the shipping business - transports cargo from customer's premises to port and from port to mother vessel by feeder vessel - claims benefits under tax treaty - AO disallows but CIT(A) allows the appeal - In the absence of definition of the expression 'operation of ships' in the Article 9 of the DTAA, Tribunal held that it would include not only the direct activity of transportation of cargo by ships owned, leased or chartered by the assessee but also transportation of cargo by feeder vessels from Indian Port to the mother vessel if such transportation is ancillary or incidental to the main activity;

that benefit of Article 9 would not be available merely on the ground that the assessee is engaged in the business of shipping globally;

that benefit of Article 9 would be available to transportation of the cargo by feeder vessels only if the assessee is able to establish the link between the transportation of cargo by feeder vessels with transportation by mother vessels owned, leased or chartered by the assessee. Thus the case is remanded for fresh examination.: MUMBAI ITAT;

2009-TIOL-24-ITAT-MAD.pdf

Shri R Radhakrishnan Vs ACIT,Chennai (Dated: June 6, 2008)

Block assessment – For getting credit for disclosed income, it should be recorded in the books of account of the assessee and not in the books of any other person.

Assessee did not file any I.T. return before search. No advance tax was paid before search. No books of accounts maintained. In the Block return, assessee claimed 50% of receipts as expenses incurred for earning the income. According to assessee no incriminating material pertaining to the addition were found during the search and addition was made only disallowing the expense claimed in the Block return.

Since no evidence for incurring the expenditure was produced, tribunal upheld the disallowance made by AO. It was also held that assessee cannot take shelter that the transactions are recorded in the books of accounts of the company for which assessee was acting as distributor when in fact assessee did not maintain any books of accounts. I.T. Act provided for giving credit to the entries made by the assessee in the books of accounts maintained by it and not anybody else.

Addition of deemed dividend under sec. 2(22)(e) deleted in Block assessment since the issue is not emanating from the seized material.

Appeal by assessee partly allowed.:CHENNAI ITAT;

2009-TIOL-23-ITAT-BANG.pdf

M/s Syndicate Bank Vs ACIT, Udupi (Dated: October 31, 2008)

Income Tax - CIT(A) directs AO to treat the surplus realized on maturity of zero coupon bonds as business income as against the assessee's action in treating the same as capital gains - Held, in the view of the fact that the assessee has accepted the AO's decision of treating the surplus as Capital Gain, AO's action upheld.

Addition on account of exchange loss in respect of London Branch: This provision relates to existing provision for bad and doubtful debts brought forward. Year after year the assessee makes provision for bad and doubtful debts after including overseas debts given from London branch. To cover the fall in exchange value at the end of the year in relation to subsisting provision, further provision is made-Held, in the view of the Tribunal decision in assessee own case direction to the AO to grant relief to the assessee.

Addition in respect of provision of 20% increases in lease premises - Held, it is obvious that there is a definite liability and the quantum of liability is not to be accepted less than what is provided for - AO directed to allow the same.:BANGALORE ITAT;

SERVICE TAX SECTION

2009-TIOL-70-CESTAT-AHM.pdf + st story.pdf

CCE & CC, Vadodara-II Vs M/s Mascon Multiservices & Consultants Pvt Ltd (Dated: December 1, 2008)

Service Tax - Detailed Engineering Survey; Cadastral Survey; Soil Investigation ; Dr awing /submission – not liable to tax under “Consulting Engineering Services." As per the definition of consulting engineer, any qualified engineer or firm engaged in the business of rendering advice, consultancy or technical assistance as a profession is liable to pay service tax. From the explanation of these activities, it would not be possible to cover them under the activity of ‘'consulting engineers'. The appellant has further contended that their activities pertaining to engineering survey for pipeline, detailed reconnaissance survey and detailed engineering survey and detailed route survey, do not involved any engineering skill. The adjudicating authority has also not recorded sufficient findings as to in what manner these activities are covered under the category of 'consulting engineers' for the purpose of levy of service tax.:AHMEDABAD CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-69-CESTAT-DEL.pdf

M/s Bharti Hexacom Ltd Vs CC & CE, Jaipur (Dated: December 5, 2008)

ST - Technical Consultancy service - assessee receives such services from non-resident service provider which has no office in India - also claims services were received much before the service was notified and only the payment was made later - issue is already settled by the Larger Bench in the Hindustan Zinc case in favour of assessee:DELHI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-68-CESTAT-DEL.pdf

CCE, Raipur Vs M/s Merlin Marketing (Dated: October 17, 2008)

ST - C & F Service - assessee enters into an agreement with a pharma company to act as their C & F Agent - On detection, assessee deposits tax with interest before issue of SCN - Commissioner(A) sets aside penalty u/s 78 and reduces penalty under Sec 76 - held, since the assessee revised the agreement with the manufacturer only to evade tax, Commissioner(A) was not right in invoking Sec 80 - since tax was deposited before the issue of SCN, penalty reduced to 25% under Sec 78:DELHI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-61-CESTAT-KOL.pdf

M/s Dolphin Service vs CST, Kolkata (Dated: November 28, 2008)

ST - Penalty - Tribunal orders pre-deposit of 25% penalty in ex parte order - modification application - assessee pleads tax with interest and penalty under Sec 77 deposited before issue of SCN - Tribunal reduces pre-deposit of penalty to 10% but says it is not a case of complete waiver of penalty:KOLKATA CESTAT;

CENTRAL EXCISE SECTION

2009-TIOL-67-CESTAT-MUM.pdf

Dil Ltd Vs CCE, Mumbai-III (Dated: November 17, 2008)

Central Excise – Vitamin D3 resin in soya bean oil classifiable under Chapter 2302.00 as animal feed supplement – Evidence in the form of product literature to suggest actual use of product as animal feed supplement – Revenue unable to substantiate with evidence that the product is natural vitamin–Decision in appellants own case [2008-TIOL-63-CESTAT-MUM]applicable:MUMBAI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-66-CESTAT-MAD.pdf

CCE, Coimbatore Vs M/s Bilt Industrial Packaging Co Ltd (Dated: December 12, 2008)

Central Excise – CENVAT Credit – credit availed on the strength of Xerox copy of the Bill of Entry – in absence of any dispute regarding the receipt of the inputs in the factory, credit cannot be denied on the ground of procedural lapse.:CHENNAI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-65-CESTAT-MUM.pdf

Raymond Ltd Vs CCE, Mumbai-III (Dated: Octocter 3, 2008)

Central Excise – When invoice issued by dealer is not lacking in material details, credit cannot be denied to manufacturer – Proceedings against receiver of inputs pre-mature when action against dealer still pending – No provision in Excise law to deny credit on invoice issued by a competent dealer:MUMBAI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-63-CESTAT-MUM.pdf

CCE, Nashik Vs Cable Corporation India Ltd (Dated: September 19, 2008)

Central Excise – When refund claim is barred by limitation it has to be rejected at the threshold – Does not warrant examination of merits / unjust enrichment to allow refund – Order of Appellate Commissioner allowing refund set aside:MUMBAI CESTAT;

CUSTOMS SECTION

NOTIFICATION

cnt09_004.pdf

CBEC notifies Pithampur and Ratlam for loading and unloading of export/import goods;

dgft08pn129.pdf

DGFT amends SION for some food items;

dgft08pn127.pdf

DGFT amends SION (Biscuits (with or without dry fruits)

dgft08cir053.pdf

Import of Restricted items under Advance Authorization Scheme - regarding. ;

CASE LAWS

2009-TIOL-22-HC-MAD-CUS.pdf + hc cus story.pdf

M/s Trendy Moods Vs CEGAT (Dated : December 23, 2008 )

Customs – Stay – pre-deposit - the word "undue" adds something more than just hardship. It means an excessive hardship or a hardship greater than the circumstances warrant:MADRAS HIGH COURT;

2009-TIOL-64-CESTAT-MAD.pdf

M/s Ashok Leyland Vs CC, Chennai (Dated: August 11, 2008)

Customs – Refund – The appellants have not applied under Section 149 of the Customs Act for amendment of the relevant entries in Bill of Entry for revision of the assessment resulting in refund of the excess duty paid or have challenged the order of assessment in a regular appeal. The assessment became final and binding. In the circumstances, the subsequent refund claim filed by the appellant is not admissible. Where duty was paid as assessed, its refund cannot be claimed without the assessment order being set aside in a statutory appeal and an assessment order cannot be challenged by way of a refund claim. (Para 3):CHENNAI CESTAT;

2009-TIOL-62-CESTAT-MAD.pdf

SRF Polymers Ltd Vs CC, Chennai (Dated: December 15, 2008)

Customs – demand of duty on warehoused goods on expiry of warehousing period – the appellant contend that the goods had suffered damage and seek assessment on lower value - No intimation of damage/deterioration of the impugned goods was given by the importer before the goods ceased to be warehoused goods - no Bill of Entry was filed for assessment of goods – rejection of relief sought upheld.:CHENNAI CESTAT;