1 IN SUPREME COURT OF INDIA CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CIVIL APPEAL NOS. 7703-7707 OF 2012 M/S GOODYEAR INDIA LTD. Appellant(s) VERSUS COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, DELHI Respondent(s) ORDER This appeal takes exception to judgment and order dated 28.04.2008 passed by High Court of Delhi at New Delhi in ITA No. 223 of 2005, whereby appeal filed by Department was allowed and issue of deletion of undisclosed income of assessee answered against appellant-assessee. After hearing learned counsel for parties and perusing impugned judgment as well as judgment of Assessing Officer and Appellate Tribunal, we find that Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (for short, ITAT ) had analyzed all relevant facts, materials and documents to arrive at conclusion that it was not case of non-disclosure as assumed by Department. That decision was taken up in appeal by Department before High Court, which had framed following question as substantial question of law: Signature Not Verified Digitally signed by DEEPAK SINGH Date: 2019.10.18 15:29:15 IST Reason: Whether Income Tax Appellate Tribunal was correct in law in deleting undisclosed income of Assessee as recorded by Securities and Exchange Commission in USA? 2 High Court, while analyzing stated question proceeded to reverse finding of fact recorded by Appellate Tribunal. For doing so, it recorded following reasons: view taken by Tribunal is completely unsustainable particularly when parent company M/s. Goodyear Tyre & Rubber Co., USA made full disclosure of amounts kept outside Assessee s books of account in India without admitting allegations made against it. Moreover, even Assessee in India had given two letters wherein it has been mentioned that it is prepared to surrender amount since it does not want any protracted litigation and prayed that penalty proceedings may not be launched against Assessee. In view of facts which have emerged from complaint made by SEC in USA as well as letters sent by Assessee to Income Tax Department in India, there can be no manner of doubt that Assessee had certain amounts outside its books of accounts which were used for purposes that were not at all legitimate inasmuch as Assessee was funding foreign trips by Indian government officials and had made payments to electricity undertaking for assuring continuous power supply to factory premises of Assessee. High Court essentially placed reliance on two letters written by assessee and assumed that it was in form of admission of non-disclosure and offer was given by assessee to pay tax and penalty, as case may be. We have perused two letters which had weighed with High Court. Our analysis of said letters is that, they had been in refutal of allegations contained in news items which were published around that time, when communication was sent by assessee to Department with explanation and without-prejudice offer. In our opinion, such communication(s) cannot be treated as admission of non-disclosure as such. What is significant to note is 3 that in present case, disclosure is attributed to Goodyear Tyre & Rubber Co., USA, filed by it in proceedings in USA; and not by assessee as such. It is not case of Department that amount referred to in said disclosure has been received in accounts of assessee or spent for and on behalf of appellant assessee under instruction, so as to be treated as undisclosed income of appellant. As aforesaid, two communications relied upon by High Court cannot be taken as admission of non-disclosure nor being case of unconditional offer to pay tax in that behalf. On other hand, we find that ITAT had exhaustively analyzed entire evidence, including two letters and taken view which, in our opinion, is possible view. That being purely finding of fact, no interference was warranted. Accordingly, these appeals must succeed and same are allowed. impugned judgment of High Court is set aside and instead judgment of ITAT is restored. No costs. Pending applications, if any, stand disposed of. .J (A.M. KHANWILKAR) .J (DINESH MAHESHWARI) New Delhi October 16, 2019 4 ITEM NO.102 COURT NO.8 SECTION XIV-A SUPREME COURT OF INDIA RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS Civil Appeal No(s). 7703-7707/2012 M/S GOODYEAR INDIA LTD. Appellant(s) VERSUS COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX, DELHI Respondent(s) ([ AT TOP ] ) Date : 16-10-2019 These appeals were called on for hearing today. CORAM : HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE A.M. KHANWILKAR HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE DINESH MAHESHWARI For Appellant(s) Mr. Ajay Vohra, Sr. Adv. Ms. Kavita Jha, AOR Mr. Anant Mann, Adv. For Respondent(s) Mr. Sanjay Jain, ASG. Mr. Arijit Prasad, Sr. Adv. Mr. Vikrant Yadav, Adv. Mr. Ashok Panigrahi, Adv. Mr. Nabab Singh, Adv. Mrs. Anil Katiyar, Adv. Mr. B. V. Balaram Das, AOR UPON hearing counsel Court made following ORDER Appeals are allowed in terms of signed order. Pending applications, if any, stand disposed of. (DEEPAK SINGH) (VIDYA NEGI) COURT MASTER (SH) COURT MASTER (NSH) [Signed order is placed on file] Goodyear India Ltd. v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Delhi