- (1.) The undisputed facts of the case are as follows: The assessee was owner of 2/5th share in a land situate at 14A, Burdwan Road, Kolkata. Naturally, there were co-owners owning the residuary the right in the land in question. The co-owners were the group companies. The case of the assessee is that the land in question or the interest of the assessee was agreed to be sold on 15th October, 1996 to 15 several buyers. Deeds of conveyance in favour of five buyers were executed on 15.1.1998. The balance 10 deeds of conveyance were executed on 26th May, 2006 and registered on 27th November, 2007. The stamp duty was assessed on 27th November, 2007. The assessee offered the sale proceeds for taxation during the financial year 2005-06 = Assessment Year 2006-07. Case of the assessee is that it had received money before executing the deed of conveyance. It would appear that the deed of conveyance was executed in the financial year 2006-07 and the registration took place in the financial year 2007-08. The question arose whether Section 50C of the Income Tax Act is applicable to the transaction. It shall be convenient to set out Section 50C, which prior to its amendment on 1st October, 2009, was as follows: Special provision for full value of consideration in certain cases. 50C. (1) Where the consideration received or accruing as a result of the transfer by an assessee of a capital asset, being land or building or both, is less than the value adopted or assessed by any authority of a State Government (hereafter in this section referred to as the "stamp valuation authority:") for the purpose of payment of stamp duty in respect of such transfer, the value so adopted or assessed shall, for the purposes of section 48, be deemed to be the full value of the consideration received or accruing as a result of such transfer. After the amendment with effect from 1st October, 2009 the provision of Section 50C stood as follows: Special provision for full value of consideration in certain cases. 50C. (1) Where the consideration received or accruing as a result of the transfer by an assessee of a capital asset, being land or building or both, is less than the value adopted or assessed [or assessable] by any authority of a State Government (hereafter in this section referred to as the "stamp valuation authority:") for the purpose of payment of stamp duty in respect of such transfer, the value so adopted or assessed [or assessable] shall, for the purposes of section 48, be deemed to be the full value of the consideration received or accruing as a result of such transfer.
(2.) The case of the assessee is that the provision of Section 50C has no manner of application because on the date when he received the money by way of sale proceeds neither the deed of conveyance had been executed and naturally it could have been registered on that date. We already have indicated that the sale proceeds were claimed to have been received in the financial year 2005-06; the deed of conveyance was executed in the financial year 2006-07 and the registration of the deed of conveyance took place in the financial year 2007-08.
(3.) The submission of the assessee was accepted by the CIT(A). The Revenue preferred an appeal. The learned Tribunal reversed the order of CIT(A). The assessee has once again come up before this Court. The following question of law has been advanced: Whether, on the facts and circumstances of the case, the learned Tribunal was justified in law in not considering that the words "or assessable" was introduced in section 50C(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 with effect from 1st October, 2009 and thus erred in taking the value of the capital asset as assessed by the Stamp Valuation Authority on 27th November, 2007 instead of actual transfer price for the relevant assessment year 2006-07?;