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Showing contexts for: charitable trust objects in Suchinta Educational Society, ... vs Assessee on 16 April, 2013Matching Fragments
8. The claim of the assessee is that in order to avail deduction under sections 11 and 12 of the Act, the assessee is to get itself registered under section 12A of the Act. Reliance was placed on the ratio laid down in Fifth Generation Education Societ y Vs. CIT ------ for the proposition that for the purpose of registration under section 12A of the Act, only the objects of the trust were charitable or not was to be seen and at the stage of grant of registration by the Commissioner of Income Tax, the application of the income is not to be looked in. The assessee placed on record another note of activities before the Commissioner of Income Tax alonwith letter dated 11.9.2012 which reads as under:
12. In view of the above said provisions of the Act, the Commissioner on receipt of the application for registration of a trust or institution has to satisfy himself about the objects of the trust or institution and also call for and collect information about the genuineness of the activities of the trust or institution. The Commissioner is empowered under the Act to make enquiries in this regard as he may deem fit. In order to avail benefit of registration under section 12AA of the Act, the applicant is to satisfy the Commissioner to whom such application has been made under section 12A of the Act, that the objects of the trust are charitable in nature and also to establish its case of genuineness of the activities being undertaken or going to be undertaken by the trust or institution.
15. In order to avail the benefit of exemption under section 11/12 of the Act the activities of the trust or institution is to be charitable or for religious purposes. As pointed out in the paras hereinabove, the conditions for applicability of sections 11 and 12 of the Act are provided under section 12A of the Act and one of the conditions is that the person in receipt of the income which he claims to be for charitable purposes is to make an application for registration of the trust or the institution in the prescribed form and in the prescribed manner to the Commissioner within the stipulated period of creation of the trust or the establishment of the institution. On receipt of the application in the requisite form No.10A alongwith Instrument of creation of the trust or the institution, the procedure for registration of the trust or the institution by the Commissioner is provided under section 12AA of the Act. A d m i t t e d l y, at the time of grant of registration the Commissioner is not empowered to examine the application of income but he has to examine whether the application is made in accordance with the requirements of section 12A of the Act and whether form No.10A has been properly filled in. The Commissioner is further to examine whether the objects of the trust are charitable or not and also to satisfy himself about the genuineness of the activities of the trust or the institution. The Commissioner is not to examine the application of income at this juncture. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in CIT Vs. U.P. Forest Corporation [230 ITR 944 (SC)], held that in order to take advantage of the provisions of section 11 of the Act, the trust or the institution has to get itself registered. Whether the income of the institution can be regarded as being held for charitable purposes and whether the institution is entitled to registration under section 12A of the Act, requires investigation of facts. In view thereof, section 12AA of the Act recognizes the principle laid down by the Hon'ble Supreme Court and Commissioner under section 12AA of the Act is empowered to call for such documents or information from the trust or the institution in order to satisfy himself that the objects of trust are charitable and also about the genuineness of the activities of the trust or the institution and is also empowered to make such enquiries as he deem necessary in this regard.
21. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in CIT Vs. Andhra Chamber of Commerce [55 ITR 722 (SC)] had held that "If there were two distinct objects, one of which was charitable and the other not charitable and if the fund of the association could be applied for either of these purposes at the discretion of those in authority, then it cannot be held that there was any property held under trust wholly for charitable purpose".
22. The objects of the assessee society have to be charitable or religious, as the case may be, in order to avail the benefits under sections 11 and 12 of the Act. The case of the assessee was that some of the trustees were already running schools and it proposes to take over one of such schools for better administration. The second plea was that it had provided free books to poor students, for which no evidence was filed. The activities proposed to be undertaken by the assessee society are not charitable in nature. Another aspect to be considered in the case of the assessee that it had not taken any step to initiate any of the activities out of primary objects as provided under the aims and objects of the society and in the absence of the same the second limb of the exercise to be carried on by the Commissioner of satisfaction of the genuineness of the activities could not be addressed by the Commissioner.