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11. On the contrary, The Ld.DR vehemently supported the order of the AO
& the Ld.CIT(A).
12. We have considered the rival contentions and submissions, perused the
materials on record, including judicial pronouncements relied upon.
Admittedly, the assessee is a Trust with charitable objects and was granted
registration u/s.12AA of the Act, on 03.09.2018 w.e.f. AY 201819. The
disallowance of exemption u/s.11 of the Act, was made by the AO
considering the fact that the assessee was not having registration u/s.12AA
of the Act, for the year under consideration while intimation u/s 143(1)
was passed. It was also the fact that the assessee has claimed exemption
being an Educational Institution while filing its return of income on
29.09.2014 for the AY 2014-15, but the same was denied vide order
u/s.143(1) of the Act dated 28.02.2016. Subsequently, the assessee had
filed a petition for rectification u/s.154 of the Act, with the AO, but has not
find any favour with a reasoning by the AO that, the assessee did not have
registration u/s.12AA of the Act also the exemption u/s.10(23C)(iiiad) of
the Act was claimed under rectification petition, the same cannot be
considered as a mistake apparent from the record and thus, the
rectification petition was rejected. In appeal, findings of the AO were
accepted by the Ld.CIT(A) and dismissed the appeal filed by the assessee.
EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION -- EXEMPTION -- REGISTRATION OF
TRUST UNDER SECTION 12AA NOT MANDATORY TO CLAIM
EXEMPTION UNDER SECTION 10(23C)(iiiad) -- INCOME-TAX ACT,
1961, ss. 10(23C)(iiiad), 12AA. During the course of registration
proceedings under section 12AA of the Income-tax Act, 1961 the assessee-
trust submitted audited accounts for the financial years 2006-07, 200708
and 2008-09. From the balance-sheet for the financial year 2006-07
relevant to the assessment year 2007-08, it was found that the trust had
collected a sum of Rs.1,15,05,100 as corpus fund. The trust was neither
registered under section 12AA nor under section 10(23C)(vi) during the
assessment year 2007-08. The assessee-trust did not file its return for the
assessment year 2007-08 relevant to the financial year 2006-07. A notice
under section 148 was issued. The Assessing Officer held that as the
assessee was not registered under section 12AA during the assessment year
2007-08, it was not eligible for exemption on account of corpus donation
and the excess of receipts over expenditure was added to the taxable
income, which was assessed at Rs.1,15,03,000. The Commissioner
(Appeals) upheld the additions made by the Assessing Officer. On further
appeal, the Tribunal accepted the plea of the assessee that it ran three
educational institutions, that it had received donation of agricultural land
valued at Rs.1.01 crore by a registered gift deed from V and three others,
and that the assessee had received corpus donation of Rs.15 lakhs from
three concerns, and held that since it was not the case of the Department
that the objects of the assessee-trust were not charitable nor that the
donation in the shape of land or amount had been utilized for any other
purposes except on the objects of the assessee-trust the Commissioner
(Appeals) was not justified in upholding the action of the Assessing Officer
and accordingly directed the Assessing Officer to delete the addition
treating the assessee as a registered trust with charitable objects. On
appeal:
Held, dismissing the appeal, that the Tribunal while setting aside the
orders of the authorities below had rightly directed the Assessing Officer to
delete the addition treating the assessee as a registered trust with
charitable objects. Of course, no educational activity had been started by
the assessee during the assessment year 2007-08 but at the same time, the
fact that the assets and funds received by it in donation were meant for
achieving its objects had not been doubted. The registration under section
12AA had been granted to the assessee by the Commissioner, with effect
from April 1, 2009 which was before the date of the assessment order
passed on December 30, 2011 though obtaining registration under section
12AA was not mandatory to claim exemption under section 10(23C)(iiiad).
According to this provision, any income received by any person on behalf
of any university or other educational institution existing solely for
educational purposes and not for the purpose of profit was exempt if the
aggregate annual receipts of such university or educational institute did
not exceed the amount prescribed. The findings of fact recorded by the
Sivasakthi Educational Trust
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