Measurement of the distance for the purpose of section 2(14)(iii)(b) of the Income-tax Act for the period prior to Assessment year 2014-15
Circular 17/2015 was issued by the Central Board of Direct Taxes on 6 October 2015. Its subject is Measurement of the distance for the purpose of section 2(14)(iii)(b) of the Income-tax Act for the period prior to Assessment year 2014-15.
This is not the department’s typed text. The department published this one as a scanned image of a signed paper, so there is no text in the file to copy. What follows was read off that image by optical character recognition and is reproduced without correction — the mistakes you can see are the machine’s, and there may be others you cannot. It is here so the document can be found and read; it is not a substitute for the file, which is linked below. Do not quote from this page.
| . Circular No. 17/2015
| | F.No.279/Misce./140/2015-ITJ
Government of India
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
Central Board of Direct Taxes
| New Delhi, 6" October, 2015
Subject:- Measurement of the distance for the purpose of section 2(14){iii)(b) of the
Income-tax Act for the period prior to Assessment year 2014-15
“Agricultural Land” is excluded from the definition of capital asset as per section
2(14\iii) of the Income-tax Act based, inter-alia, on its proximity to a municipality or cantonment board. The method of measuring the distance of the said land from the municipality, has given rise to considerable litigation. Although, the amendment by the Finance
Act, 2013 w.e.f. 1.04.2014 prescribes the measurement of the distance to be taken aerially, ambiguity persists in respect of earlier periods. .
2. The matter has been examined in light of judicial decisions on the subject. The Nagpur
Bench of the Hon. Bombay High Court vide order dated 30.03.2015 in ITA 151 of 2013 in the case of Smt. Maltibai R Kadu has held that the amendment prescribing distance to be
. measured aerially, applies prospectively i.e. in relation to assessment year 2014-15 and subsequent assessment years. For the period prior to assessment year 2014-15, the High Court held that the distance between the municipal limit and the agricultural land is to be measured having regard to the shortest road distance. The said decision of the High Court has been accepted and the aforesaid disputed issue has not been further contested.
3. Being a settled issue, no appeals may henceforth be filed on this ground by the officers of the Department and appeals already filed, if any, on this issue before various Courts/
Tribunals may be withdrawn/ not pressed upon. This may be brought to the notice of all concermed. - .
(D.S. Chaudhry)
. CIT (A&J), CBDT,
: New Delhi
- Copy to:
1. The Chairperson, Members and officers of the CBDT of the rank of Under Secretary and above.
2. All Pr. Chief Commissioners of Income-Tax & All Directors General of Income-Tax with a request to bring to the attention of all officers.
3. The Pr. Director General of Income-Tax, NADT, Nagpur.
4. The Pr. DGIT (Systems), ARA Centre, Jhandewalan Extension, New Delhi.
Page 1 of 2
Source: the department’s scanned file.
Source: the Income Tax Department’s own published text — its page for this instrument.
