JUDGMENT

Nagarathna, J.

Leave granted in those Special Leave Petitions where it has not yet been granted.

2. These appeals arise out of analogous proceedings against the appellant/assessee, and, inter alia, impugn the judgement dated 26.11.2015 passed by the Kerala High Court; the order dated 08.08.2016 passed by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals), Trivandrum and the order dated 07.02.2019 passed by the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT).

3. The issue involved in these cases is, whether, the appellant/assessee, a co-operative society, is entitled to claim deduction of the whole of its profits and gains of business attributable to the business of banking or providing credit facilities to its members who are all co-operative societies under Section 80P of the INCOME TAX ACT , 1961 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act", for the sake of brevity).

Since the question of law involved in these proceedings are common, the facts only in SLP(C) No(s). 2737 of 2016 impugning the judgement of the High Court of Kerala dated 26.11.2015 are narrated.

4. The facts, in a nutshell, are that the appellant/assessee is a Statelevel Agricultural and Rural Development Bank governed by as a cooperative society under the Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969 (hereinafter referred to as the "State Act, 1969" for the sake of brevity) and is engaged in providing credit facilities to its members who are cooperative societies only. Initially in the year 1951, the appellant/assessee got registered under Section 10 of the Travancore-Cochin Co-operative Societies Act, 1951 (for short, "State Act, 1951"). On 04.10.1956, the appellant received a Registration Certificate bearing No. 4017 from the Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Trivandrum, recognizing it as a co-operative Central Land Mortgage Bank incorporated on the basis of limited liability under Section 10 of the State Act, 1951 (X of 1952). The office of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies, Trivandrum further addressed a communication dated 17.11.1961 bearing No. 36444/61.PR2 including the rules relating to Retirement Benefit Fund and Staff Benefit Fund for Kerala Co-operative Central Mortgage Bank Ltd.

5. The Kerala Co-operative Societies Act, 1969 was enacted in order to, inter alia, provide for the orderly development of the co-operative sector in the State and to unify the law relating to co-operative societies in the State. Vide Section 110 of the State Act, 1969, the State Act, 1951 (X of 1952) was repealed. Therefore, the appellant/assessee came to be registered and regulated under the State Act, 1969. The appellant/assessee being the Kerala State Co-operative Agricultural and Rural Development Bank Ltd., Thiruvananthapuram, is also included in Schedule I of the State Act, 1969 as regards the application of the Section 80(3A) thereof that postulates that when direct recruitments is resorted to the same shall be made from a select list of candidates furnished by the Kerala Public Service Commission.

6. The State Act, 1969 defines "co-operative society with limited liability" in Section 2 (g) as a society in which the liability of its members for the debts of the society in the event of its being wound up is limited by its bye-laws (i) to the amount, if any, unpaid on the shares respectively held by them; or (ii) to such amount as they may, respectively, undertake to contribute to the assets of the society.

7. It would also be apposite to take note of the Kerala State CoOperative Agricultural Development Banks Act, 1984 (for short, "State Act, 1984"). This Act was passed to facilitate the more efficient working of Co-operative "Agricultural and Rural Development Banks" in the State of Keral