D.b. Income Tax Appeal v. Krishi Upaj Mandi Samiti

D.B. INCOME TAX APPEAL NO. 88/2007.C.I.T. Jodhpur Vs. Krishi Upaj Mandi Samiti ... Date of Order :: 12[th] March 2010. HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE MR. JAGDISH BHALLAHON'BLE MR. JUSTICE DINESH MAHESHWARI Mr. K.K. Bissa, for the appellant.Mr. Dinesh Mehta, for the respondent. ..... BY THE COURT: Though the matter is listed for orders on the applicationmoved by the appellant for amendment in the memo of appeal,however, at the request and with the consent of the learned forthe parties, the matter has been heard finally at this stage. The learned counsel for the parties are ad idem that thesubstantial questions of law as formulated in this appealessentially stand decided against the appellant for the viewalready taken by this Court in I.T. Appeal No. 107/2007 :Commissioner of Income-Tax Vs. K.U.M.S. Jaisalmer,decided on 18.03.2008 [reported in (2008) 216 CTR (Raj.281]. The instant appeal was admitted for consideration on the following substantial questions of law:- “1. Whether on the facts and in the circumstancesof the case, the learned ITAT was justified indirecting to grant the registration under Section12AA of the IT Act to the assessee ? 2.Whether on the facts and in thecircumstances of the case, the respondentassessee can be said to be a Trust or anInstitution constituted for the charitable purposesand whether its activities are charitable as definedin Section 2 (15) of the IT Act ?” In the decision noticed above, similar nature questionswere considered by this Court in relation to the Krishi UpajMandi Samiti, Jaisalmer; and this Court held that such KrishiUpaj Mandi Samiti, whose income is required to be spent forthe purposes mentioned in the Rajasthan Agricultural ProduceMarkets Act, 1961, including advancement of any other objectof general public utility, which is a charitable purpose, iseligible for registration under Section 12A of the Income-TaxAct, 1961. This Court said,- “May be that the income received by the Samitiby way of cess or Mandi fees is not shown to bespent wholly for the purpose of relief of the poor,education, or medical relief, but under thescheme of the Act, being the RajasthanAgricultural Produce Markets Act, 1961, theentire amount received by the samiti is requiredto be spent for the purpose mentioned therein,which obviously include advancement of 'anyother object of general public utility'. In that viewof the matter, Samiti is entitled to be registeredunder s. 12A. In our above view, we are fortifiedby the judgments of Punjab & Haryana HighCourt in CIT Vs. Market Committee (2007) 294ITR 563 (P&H), and CIT Vs. AgriculturalProduce and Market Committee (2007) 36 SITC278. Mohan/ The activities of the respondent herein, i.e., the KrishiUpaj Mandi Samiti, Bilara, a market committee constitutedunder the aforesaid Rajasthan Act of 1961 are similar and akinto the activities of the said Krishi Upaj Mandi Samiti, Jaisalmerand for all material purposes, the ratio of the decisionaforesaid squarely applies to the present case. In view of the above, the questions formulated in thepresent case are answered against the Revenue and in favourof the assessee; and accordingly, this appeal standsdismissed. No costs. (DINESH MAHESHWARI),J. (JAGDISH BHALLA),CJ.