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2019 (7) TMI 1825 - AT - Income TaxExemption u/s 11 denied - charitable activities u/s 2(15) - action of the AO in holding the activities of promoting the game of cricket as business income u/s. 28 - receipts on account of sale of tickets, sponsorship income - HELD THAT:- Whatever we decide in the case of Gujarat Cricket Association [2019 (1) TMI 1522 - ITAT AHMEDABAD] the same will equally apply in this case as well. We, therefore, uphold the plea of the assessee and allow these grounds of appeal to that extent in principle. There is, however, a rider. In this case, there is also a reference to the assessee organizing a one day international match, on commercial scale, for fund raising. That issue is dealt with in a separate ground of appeal. In case, it is held that the said one day international match is in the nature of commercial adventure, it will have the impact on section 2(15) being invoked. That ground is separately being remitted to the file of the CIT(A) for fresh adjudication, and the eventual decision on the same will also have the impact on these issues. We, therefore, remit the matter to the file of the CITI(A) for fresh adjudication in the light of our observations in the case of Gujarat Cricket Association (supra) and the findings on the said aspect of the matter. Withdrawing exemption u/s 11(1)(d) as sum received in the form of Corpus donation - TV subsidies receipts - HELD THAT:- There is no dispute that the TV subsidy in question is sent under this resolution. On these facts, and in the light of the provisions of Section 11(1)(d) which only require the income to be “by way of voluntary contributions made with a specific direction that they shall form part of the corpus of the trust or the institution”, we are of the considered view that any payments made by the BCCI, without a legal obligation and with a specific direction that it shall be for corpus fund- as admittedly the present receipt is, is required to be treated as corpus donation not includible in total income. We are unable to find any legal support for learned CIT(A)’s stand that each donation must be accompanied by a separate written document. The contribution has to be voluntary and it has to be with specific direction that it will form corpus of the trust’. These conditions are clearly satisfied. Any payment which the assessee is not under an obligation to make, whatever be the mode of its computation, is a voluntary payment, and, any payment which is with a specific direction that it for corpus fund is a corpus donation. In our considered view, even without the two specific confirmations filed by the assessee, in the light of the BCCI resolution under which the payment is made and in the light of the payment not being under any legal obligation, the conditions under section 11(1)(d) are satisfied. We, therefore, uphold the plea of the assessee. The Assessing Officer is accordingly directed to delete this addition Corpus donation in form of Infrastructure Subsidy- As long as the subsidy is relatable to a capital asset created by the assessee on his own or by an eligible district cricket association, as the present subsidy undisputedly is, it is outside the ambit of revenue receipt and taxable income. The very foundation of the stand of the Assessing Officer is thus devoid of legally sustainable merits. As such, there can hardly be an occasion, in principle, to hold such a subsidy as a revenue receipt or taxable income. There is not even a whisper of a discussion by the Assessing Officer to the effect that infrastructure subsidy is revenue in nature. As a matter of fact, the claim is made for the subsidy only after the expenditure having been incurred. The authorities below have simply brushed aside the case and the submissions of the assessee and proceeded to hold it as an income. Looking to the nature of the subsidy, which is clearly relatable to the capital assets generated, we are unable to hold this receipt in the revenue field. We, therefore, uphold the plea of the assessee on this point as well and delete the addition. Income from hosting of One Day International match ("ODI") - We find that though there are findings to the above effect in the order of the Assessing Officer, the CIT(A) has dealt with the same in a very causal manner and without specific and categorical discussions on the same. We, therefore, deem it fit and proper to remit the matter to the file of the CIT(A) on this issue. We order so. As we do so, and for the detailed reasons set out earlier while dealing with Gujarat Cricket Associations case [2019 (1) TMI 1522 - ITAT AHMEDABAD] we make it clear that it is only in the event of this event being organized by the appellant cricket association on its own, rather than under arrangements and planning by the BCCI, that this could be put against the assessee as an adventure in the nature of trade, commerce or business. Thus we allow the appeal of the assessee.
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