Legal Case Summary

Case Details
Case ID 1b9c55da-9394-49fa-b411-3fa686df0d5b
Body View case body.
Case Number I.T.A. No.3874/LB of 1984-85
Decision Date Jan 10, 1989
Hearing Date Dec 14, 1988
Decision The tribunal concluded that the transaction of selling the agricultural land was not an adventure in the nature of trade. The assessee had purchased the land for agricultural purposes and had used it for cultivation over a significant period. The dominant intention at the time of purchase was not profit-making. The evidence supported that the sale was a solitary transaction and did not constitute a business activity. Therefore, the income from the sale was determined to be casual gains or capital gains, not taxable as revenue income. The decisions of the departmental officers were vacated, affirming that the profits from the sale were not liable to taxation as business income.
Summary In the case of I.T.A. No.3874/LB of 1984-85 decided on January 10, 1989, by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, the core issue was whether the sale of agricultural land by the assessee constituted an adventure in the nature of trade, making the profits taxable as revenue receipts. The tribunal emphasized the necessity of understanding the dominant intentions behind the purchase and sale of the property. The evidence indicated that the land had been used solely for agricultural purposes for many years and the transaction was isolated, not indicative of a trading activity. The tribunal referenced various precedents, establishing that a solitary transaction does not equate to trade. The implications of agricultural land sales, the intention behind land purchases, and the nature of isolated transactions were crucial in this decision. Keywords: Income Tax Ordinance, agricultural land, adventure in nature of trade, capital gains, revenue receipts, taxability, solitary transaction, dominant intention.
Court Income Tax Appellate Tribunal
Entities Involved Not available
Judges MIAN ABDUL KHALIQ, MIRZA MUHAMMAD WASIM, FAKHAR-UD-DIN SIDDIQUI
Lawyers Ahmad Nouman Sh., Munir Qureshi
Petitioners Not available
Respondents Not available
Citations 1989 SLD 59, 1989 PTD 460, (1989) 60 TAX 17
Other Citations 1975 P T D (Trib.) 6, (1978) 37 Tax 236, (1959) 35 I T R 594, Leeming v. Jones (1930; 15 TC 333, Commissioner of Inland Revenue v. Rinhold (1953) 34 TC 389, Janki Ram Bahadar Ram v. Commissioner of Income-tax (1965) 57 ITR 21 (SC), 1984 P T D (Trib.) 127, Commissioner of Inland Revenue v. Ligingston and others 11 Tax Cas. 538, 14 Tax Cas. 468, (1959) 35 I T R 594 SC, (1959) 35 I T R 59
Laws Involved Income Tax Ordinance, 1979
Sections 2(ii), 62