9911796707
TMI Blog2008 (4) TMI 353X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nbsp; 6.91 13.31 2003-04 5.11 4.02 9.13 2004-05 2.04 1.08 3.12 ----- Total 83.74 ----- Less : Already paid 11.00 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sideration. The relevant details required by the Assessing Officer, however, were not furnished by it which culminated in the assessments being completed by the Assessing Officer ex parte to the best of his judgment under section 144. In the said assessments, the income of the assessee company chargeable to tax in India was estimated by him at Rs. 564 crores for each of the six relevant years and a demand of Rs. 1,535.19 crores inclusive of tax and interest was raised by him against the assessee. The said assessments made by the Assessing Officer under section 144 were challenged by the assessee company in the appeals filed before the learned CIT(A) who, vide his consolidated order dated 28-11-2007 passed for assessment years 1999-2000 to 2004-05, upheld the validity of assessments completed by the Assessing Officer. He also agreed with the conclusion of the Assessing Officer that the assessee company had a business connection in India in terms of section 9(1)(i) through the assets i.e., cable network situated in India. As regards the quantum of income of the assessee company chargeable to tax in India as assessed by the Assessing Officer at Rs. 564 crores for each year on estimate ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ssee could be considered to have a business connection in India, by virtue of its minuscule proportionate ownership interests in the three submarine cables within the Indian exclusive economic zone, it cannot be subjected to taxation in India because it has carried on no operations in India which is an essential pre-requisite for invoking the fiscal charge. Even if it were held, without prejudice, that the assessee did have a business connection or a property or an asset in India and all three alleged sources of income were taxable in India for all the six years pursuant to that business connection, the income which could be attributed to the alleged operations in India must be limited to the percentage of cable system in India. (iii) The learned CIT(A) wrongly attributed the gross revenue from Indian telecommunication service providers as being wholly taxable in India whereas if he had correctly applied the law then, without prejudice, only 1.31 per cent of such revenues could be taxable in India. The submissions of the assessee on erroneous estimation of incomes from sources 2 and 3 and denial of attribution of income from source 1, if accepted would significantly reduce the qua ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the assessee would have been subject to deduction of tax at source under section 195 (forming part of Chapter XVII-B) of the Act (irrespective of whether the amount of tax has actually been deducted or collected at source), the assessee in the present case is therefore not liable to pay interest under section 234B of the Act. 4. Although all the aforesaid points of contention raised on behalf of the assessee on merits can appropriately be considered while adjudicating upon the relevant issues on merits only at the time of hearing of its appeals by the Bench and it is neither desirable nor required to express any opinion at this stage, we are of the view that the submissions made by the learned counsel for the assessee in this regard are sufficient to show that the assessee has a good prima facie arguable case on merits to succeed in its appeals preferred before the Tribunal. Moreover, as pointed out by the learned counsel for the assessee, even if some of the contentions of the assessee relating to factual mistakes in the working of quantum of income made by the learned CIT(A) are accepted, the demand outstanding against the assessee would come down substantially. The learned Depa ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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