Assessee trust was established inter alia with primary aim and objective to promote habitat concept. Assessee filed its return declaring nil income. Assessing Officer held that activities of assessee were hybrid in nature and partly covered by provisions of section 11 read with section 2(15) and partly by principle of mutuality and since assessee was not maintaining separate books of account, income could not be bifurcated under principle of mutuality or otherwise, therefore, entire surplus was treated as taxable income of assesseee. Tribunal allowed the exemption. On appeal dismissing the appeal of the revenue the Court held that, since assessee had not generated any surplus from either members or non-members, it was not correct to say that assessee had claimed relief partly as charitable organisation and partly as mutual association, further, since assessee was registered as a charitable trust, principle of mutuality for computation of its income was not required to be gone into as income was to be computed as per sections 11, 12 and 13. Order of Tribunal is affirmed. (AY 2012-13)
CIT(E) v. India Habitat Centre (2020) 269 Taxman 401 (Delhi)(HC)
S. 11 : Property held for charitable purposes-Primary aim and objective to promote habitat concept-Registered as Charitable Trust-Principle of mutuality not required to be gone in to-Entitle to exemption. [S. 2(15), 12, 13]