Income-tax Act (XI of 1922)---

----S. 10(2)(xvi)---Foreign currency loan---Payment of additional amount by the assessee on account of fluctuation in the rate of foreign currency-- Admissibility---Held, if the assessee had treated the foreign exchange involved as a part of revenue account, it would be an admissible item in trading expenses but if the foreign exchange was treated as a capital asset the loss would be of capital nature.

AA. Sharif for Applicant.

Nasrullah Awan for Respondent.

Date of hearing: 14th February,4989.

JUDGMENT

AJMAL MIAN, CJ: --By this reference, the following question has been referred to this Court by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal:--

"Whether in the facts and circumstances of the case the Tribunal was right in holding that the sum of Rs.1,17,795 being the additional amount expended by the appellant because of fluctuations in the rate of exchange, in making repayment of the foreign currency loan, was Capital Expenditure?"

The above question has been inter alia dealt with in ITR No5 of 1980 in which the present applicant was also the applicant, but the assessment year was different. In the instant case the assessment year is 1973-74, whereas in the aforesaid reference the asessment year was 1972-73. We have answered the 'above question by our judgment dated 7-2-1989 in terms of paragraph 3 of the said judgment, which reads as follows:--

"3. In the instant case, the above principle enuneiated in the above-quotedpassage will be applicable and, therefore, the answer of the above quoted question would be that if the applicant had treated the foreign exchange involved as a part of revenue account, it would be an admissible item in trading expenses but if the foreign exchange was treated as a capital asset the loss would be of capital nature."

We would, therefore, dispose of the above reference also in terms of the above-quoted paragraph 3.

M.BA./B-244/KReference disposed.