Prabha Vinimay (P) Ltd., Kolkata V. I.T.O.,Ward-10(2), Kolkata

ITA 1584/KOL/2019

• Counselvise Citation: [2019] 112 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 0681 (ITAT-KOLKATA)
• Duration Of Justice: 5 month(s) 19 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 20-12-2019
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Partly Allowed
• Bench Allotted: SMC
• Assessment Year: 2014-2015
• Appeal Filed On: 01-07-2019
• Result in Favour of: Partly Allowed
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: JAYANTA KHANUA
• Keywords: Reasonable cause; Condonation of delay; Set aside

Judgement Text

1 ITA NO. 1584/KOL/2019 PRABHA VINIMAY PVT. LTD. AY- 2014-15 , C(SMC) , IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL C(SMC) BENCH : KOLKATA ( ) . . , ) [BEFORE SHRI A. T. VARKEY, JM] ITA NO.1584/KOL/2019 ASSESSMENT YEAR: 2014-15 PRABHA VINIMAY PVT. LTD. (PAN: AABCP5537B) VS. INCOME-TAX OFFICER, WD-10(2), KOLKATA APPELLANT RESPONDENT DATE OF HEARING 20.11.2019 DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT 20.12.2019 FOR THE APPELLANT SHRI SUBASH AGARWAL, ADVOCATE FOR THE RESPONDENT SHRI JAYANTA KHANUA, JCIT, SR. D R ORDER THIS IS AN APPEAL PREFERRED BY THE ASSESSEE AGAINST THE ORDER OF LD. CIT(A)-4, KOLKATA DATED 29-05-2019 FOR THE ASSESSMENT YEAR 2014-15. 2. AT THE OUTSET ITSELF, THE LD. COUNSEL FOR THE AS SESSEE SHRI SUBASH AGARWAL , ADVOCATE BROUGHT TO OUR NOTICE THAT THE LD. CIT(A) HAS DISMI SSED THE APPEAL OF THE ASSESSEE ON THE GROUND THAT THE DELAY CAUSE IN FILING THE APPEAL OF 799 DAYS CANNOT BE CONDONED SINCE THERE IS NO REASONABLE CAUSE TO DO SO. THE LD. COUNSEL B ROUGHT TO OUR NOTICE THAT THE ASSESSEE COMPANYS DIRECTORS BROTHER WAS SUFFERING FROM ACU TE KIDNEY AILMENT AND, THEREFORE, THEY WERE TAKING CARE OF HIS HEALTH AS WELL AS THERE WAS A SURVEY ACTION TAKEN BY THE DEPARTMENT AGAINST THE ASSESSEE COMPANY WHICH TRIGGERED THE DE PARTMENT TAKING ACTION AGAINST THE ASSESSEE FOR WHICH THE ASSESSEES DIRECTORS WERE TO TALLY ENGAGED AND, THEREFORE, DID NOT COME TO KNOW ABOUT THE IMPUGNED ACTION OF THE AO, W HICH RESULTED IN DELAY OF 799 DAYS IN FILING THE APPEAL AND, THEREFORE, THE LD. COUNSEL F OR THE ASSESSEE PRAYS FOR CONDONATION OF DELAY AND HAS FILED AN AFFIDAVIT AS WELL AS MEDICAL CERTIFICATE TO SUPPORT THE AVERMENTS MADE IN THE AFFIDAVIT. LD. DR OPPOSES THE PRAYER OF THE LD. COUNSEL FOR THE ASSESSEE TO REMAND BACK THE ISSUE BEFORE THE LD. CIT(A). 3. HAVING HEARD BOTH THE PARTIES AND PERUSED THE RE CORDS, IT IS FOUND THAT DUE TO THE REASONS STATED IN PARA 2 SUPRA, THE ASSESSEE COMPAN YS DIRECTORS COULD NOT INITIATE FILING OF APPEAL WHICH WAS DUE TO THE REASON STATED ABOVE, WH ICH I FIND TO BE SUPPORTED BY MEDICAL CERTIFICATE AND SWORN AFFIDAVIT. AFTER PERUSAL OF T HE AFFIDAVIT AS WELL AS THE MEDICAL 2 ITA NO. 1584/KOL/2019 PRABHA VINIMAY PVT. LTD. AY- 2014-15 CERTIFICATE SUPPORTING THE SAME, I AM OF THE OPINIO N THAT SINCE THERE IS REASONABLE CAUSE, I CONDONE THE DELAY AND WHILE DOING SO, IT IS NOTED T HAT THE HONBLE SUPREME COURT IN THE CASE OF COLLECTOR OF LAND ACQUISITION VS MST KATIJI & OTHERS 167 ITR 471 (SC) HAS EXPLAINED THE PRINCIPLE THAT NEED TO BE KEPT IN MIN D WHILE CONSIDERING THE APPLICATION FOR CONDONATION OF DELAY. THE HONBLE APEX COURT HAS E MPHASIZED THAT SUBSTANTIAL JUSTICE SHOULD PREVAIL OVER TECHNICAL CONSIDERATION. THE H ONBLE APEX COURT HAS ALSO OBSERVED THAT A LITIGANT DOES NOT STAND TO BENEFIT BY LODGING THE APPEAL LATE. THE HONBLE APEX COURT HAS ALSO OBSERVED THAT EVERY DAYS DELAY MUST BE EXPLAI NED DOES NOT MEAN THAT A PEDANTIC APPROACH SHOULD BE TAKEN. THE DOCTRINE MUST BE APP LIED IN A RATIONAL, COMMON SENSE AND PRAGMATIC MANNER. IN THE CASE OF VEDABAI ALIAS VAI JAYANTABAI BABURAO PATIL VS. SHANTARAM BABURAO PATIL & ORS. 253 ITR 798(SC), THE HONBLE SUPREME COURT WHILE CONSIDERING THE ISSUE OF CONDONATION OF DELAY OBSERVED THAT SUBSTAN TIAL JUSTICE IS OF PRIME IMPORTANCE. HENCE, I CONDONE THE DELAY OF 799 DAYS. SINCE THE LD. CIT(A) HAS NOT DECIDED THE APPEAL ON MERITS I SET ASIDE THE ORDER OF LD. CIT(A) AND C ONDONE THE DELAY IN FILING THE APPEAL BEFORE THE LD. CIT(A) AND DIRECT HIM TO DECIDE THE APPEAL ON MERITS AFTER HEARING THE ASSESSEE IN ACCORDANCE TO LAW. 4. IN THE RESULT, THE APPEAL OF ASSESSEE IS ALLOWED FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES. ORDER IS PRONOUNCED IN THE OPEN COURT ON 20TH DECEM BER, 2019. SD/- (ABY. T. VARKEY) DATED :20TH DECEMBER, 2019 JUDICIAL MEMBER JD.(SR.P.S.) COPY OF THE ORDER FORWARDED TO: 1. APPELLANT PRABHA VINIMAY PVT. LTD., C/O SUBHASH AGARWAL & ASSOCIATES, ADVOCATES, SIDDHA GIBSON, 1, GIBSON LANE, SUITE 213 , 2 ND FLOOR, KOLKATA- 700 069. 2 RESPONDENT ITO, WARD-10(2) , KOLKATA. 3. 4. 5. CIT(A)-4, KOLKATA (SENT THROUGH E-MAIL) CIT- , KOLKATA. DR, ITAT, KOLKATA. (SENT THROUGH E-MAIL) / TRUE COPY, BY ORDER, ASSISTANT REGISTRAR