BIRLA VIDYA NIKETAN Vs. INCOME TAX OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE Income -tax Appellate Tribunal, Delhi Bench 'G', Delhi ('Tribunal') in ITA Nos. 2272 to 2281/Del/2006. Although 10 corresponding appeals have been filed by the assessee, the present order is being passed in ITA No. 868 of 2007 relevant to financial year 2000 -01, since common issues arise in all the appeals.

(2.) THE assessee is a public school run by a registered society and the provisions of Chapter XVII -B of the Act are Department officials examined the books of account of the assessee school for the period 2000 -01 onwards. It was found that the assessee has been providing concessional educational facilities to the teachers and other staff members of the assessee school. In other words, the assessee had been charging concessional fees from the children of the employees studying in the school @ 50 per cent in respect of the standard/normal tuition fees, ancillary fees and computer fees and @ 60 per cent in respect of the standard/normal sports fees and annual fees. The normal fee charged for classes KG -I and KG -II was Rs. 16,200 per annum and the normal tuition fees, ancillary fees for classes I to XII was Rs. 15,000 per annum. The case of the assessee was that the difference between fees charged from a general student and fees charged from children of the employees, varied between Rs. 7,500 and Rs. 9,915. Thus, the value of the concession was below Rs. 12,000 per annum per child, that is below Rs. 1,000 per month per child. It was claimed that in terms with the proviso to r. 3(5) of the IT Rules, 1962 ('IT Rules') a concession of a total value of less than Rs. 1,000 per month would not be treated as such.

(3.) THE AO did not accept this contention and computed the short -deduction of tax at source by the assessee in terms of s. 201(1) of the Act for the financial years 2000 -01 to 2004 -05 as amounting to Rs. 3,66,825. The interest payable thereon under s. 201(1A) of the Act was computed as Rs. 1,35,997.