#Valuation

The Bombay High Court held that stamp duty on a Joint Development Agreement cannot be levied on future contingent development rights as if they were present vested rights, quashing orders that inflated valuation beyond rights existing on the execution date. The ruling clarifies that valuation under Article 5(g-a)(i) must reflect only the development rights actually transferred at the time of agreement execution, protecting developers from excessive duty demands on speculative future entitlements.

CESTAT Bangalore ruled that the Self Employed Women's Association (SEWA), a member-based trade union, does not qualify as a 'manpower recruitment or supply agency' under the Finance Act, 1994, because the workers are members of the organisation rather than employees deployed through an intermediary service. The decision clarifies that the mutuality principle excludes such collective self-employment arrangements from service tax liability, impacting similar member-driven collectives and cooperatives.

The Gujarat High Court ruled that a District Valuation Committee report is valid evidence for compensation when sale deeds are missing, and upheld the 60 % market-value deduction with a 10 % annual escalation. This sets a clear valuation method for land acquired under the Land Acquisition Act, 1894, affecting both landowners and acquiring authorities.

CESTAT Chennai rules that Integral Coach Factory’s refund claims for excess excise duty are not barred by unjust enrichment, as state-owned entities engaged in public manufacturing are exempt from this doctrine. Valuation must follow CAS-4 standards, not the Railway Code, affirming that cost-based accounting methods used in batch production are legally valid for duty calculation and refund eligibility.

CESTAT Chennai rules that abatement for trade discounts in jewellery trade can be granted based on consolidated sales data and Chartered Accountant certificates, without requiring transaction-wise correlation. This eases compliance burdens for manufacturers adopting provisional assessments under Rule 7 of Central Excise Rules, particularly in industries with fluctuating prices and indirect sales channels.

ITAT Bangalore rules that cost of improvement in capital gains computation cannot be disallowed merely for lack of documents. Assessing Officer must verify claims through valuation.