2010 (8) TMI 1192 - AT - Income Tax

Summary

ISSUES:

Whether notional interest income can be added to the assessee's total income in absence of actual receipt or due interest.Whether agricultural income can be treated as non-agricultural income in absence of evidence of cultivation expenses and sale of produce.

RULINGS / HOLDINGS:

The addition of notional interest income was held unjustified as there was "no provision in the Income Tax Act empowering the ITO to include in the income of the assessee, interest which were not due or collected." The authorities below based their findings "primarily on presumption only" without evidence that interest had been earned or was due.The treatment of agricultural income as non-agricultural income was reversed because the assessee was "primarily an agriculturist" and the Assessing Officer failed to produce "any evidence on record that the assessee has income from other sources also." The agricultural income declared was held to be exempt and not taxable.

RATIONALE:

The Court applied the principle from the Hon'ble Gauhati High Court that the Income Tax Act does not authorize taxing "interest which were not due or collected." The Supreme Court's ruling that "law does not oblige a trader to make maximise profits" was cited to emphasize that taxing presumed income without proof is impermissible. The burden was on the Assessing Officer to prove actual or due interest, which was not discharged. The ITAT Jodhpur Bench decision was relied upon to support that "charging of estimated interest on notional basis is unjustified."Regarding agricultural income, the Court relied on prior ITAT decisions holding that in the absence of evidence of other taxable income, agricultural income remains exempt. The mere possession of agricultural land without evidence of cultivation or sale does not justify reclassification of income. The Court noted that the Assessing Officer's estimation without supporting material was improper, and the principle that agricultural income is exempt unless proven otherwise was reaffirmed.