P S Naidu (HUF), Hyderabad V. Asst. Commissioner of Income Tax, Circle-7(1), Hyderabad

ITA 1730/Hyd/2018

• Counselvise Citation: [2019] 118 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 7475 (ITAT-HYDERABAD)
• Duration Of Justice: 4 month(s) 17 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 09-01-2019
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Allowed
• Bench Allotted: DB-B
• Assessment Year: 2000-2001
• Appeal Filed On: 23-08-2018
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: ANJALA SAHU
• Assessee Lawyers: A V RAGHURAM
• Keywords: Unexplained cash credit
• Section: 147

Judgement Text

IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL HYDERABAD BENCH B ', HYDERABAD BEFORE SMT. P. MADHAVI DEVI, JUDICIAL MEMBER AND SHRI S. RIFAUR RAHMAN , ACCOUNTANT MEMBER ITA NO. 1730 / HYD/201 8 ASSESSMENT YEAR S : 20 0 0 - 0 1 P.S. NAIDU (HUF) , HYDERABAD. PAN A GIPP2670D VS. ASST. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME - TAX, CIRCLE 7 ( 1 ), HYDERABAD. APPELLANT RESPONDENT ASSESSEE BY: S HRI A.V. RAGHURAM REVENUE BY: S MT. ANJALA SAHU DATE OF HEARING: 2 6 / 1 2 / 201 8 DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT: 0 9 / 01 /201 9 O R D E R PER S. RIFAUR RAHMAN , AM: T H IS APPEAL FILED BY THE ASSESSEE IS DIRECTED AGAINST THE ORDER OF CIT(A) 3 , HYDERABAD, DATED, 1 8 /0 4 /201 8 FOR AY 20 00 - 01 . 2. THIS IS SECOND ROUND OF APPEAL. BRIEF FACTS OF THE CASE ARE, ON A SURVEY CONDUCTED ON 01/12/1999 IN THE CASE OF M/S OBAN FINANCIERS, THE AO NOTICED THAT THE SAID FINANCE BUSINESS WAS TAKEN OVER BY THE ASSESSEE W.E.F. 01/07/1999 FOR A CONSIDERATION OF RS. 2 5,000/ - . THEREFORE, THE AO INITIATED PROCEEDINGS U/S 147 OF THE ACT AND AFTER CONSIDERING THE OBJECTIONS FROM ASSESSEE, AN AMOUNT OF RS. 11,46,000/ - WAS BROUGHT TO TAX AS UNEXPLAINED CREDITS. 2.1 WHEN THE ASSESSEE PREFERRED AN APPEAL BEFORE THE CIT(A), T HE CIT(A) CONFIRMED THE ADDITION MADE BY THE AO. I.T.A. NO. 1730 /HYD/1 8 P.S. NAIDU (HUF) 2 2.2 WHEN THE ASSESSEE CARRIED THE MATTER IN APPEAL BEFORE THE ITAT, THE ITAT RESTORED THE MATTER TO THE FILE OF AO WITH A DIRECTION TO RE - EXAMINE THE WHOLE ISSUE FOR FRESH CONSIDERATION. 2.3 CONSEQUENT TO THE DIRECTIONS OF THE ITAT, THE AO ASKED THE ASSESSEE TO FURNISH DETAILS SUCH AS, NAME, ADDRESS AND CONFIRMATIONS FROM THE LOAN CREDITORS BUT THE ASSESSEE DID NOT FILE ADDRESS OF THE CREDITORS/DEPOSITORS OR CONFIRMATION LETTER FROM THE SAID L OAN CREDITORS. SINCE THE ASSESSEE DID NOT PROVIDE ANY VALID DOCUMENTS/EVIDENCE TO PROVE THE GENUINENESS AND CREDITWORTHINESS OF LOAN CREDITORS AMOUNTING TO RS. 11,46,000/ - , THE AO BROUGHT TO TAX THIS AMOUNT AS UNEXPLAINED CREDITS. 3. AGGRIEVED BY THE ORD ER OF AO, THE ASSESSEE PREFERRED AN APPEAL BEFORE THE CIT(A), WHO DISMISSED THE APPEAL IN - LIMINE ON THE GROUND THAT THE ASSESSEE HAS NOT FILED APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY, WHICH IS MANDATORY . 4. AGGRIEVED BY THE ORDER OF CIT(A), THE ASSESSEE IS IN APPEAL BEFORE US RAISING THE FOLLOWING GROUNDS OF APPEAL: 1. THE ORDER OF THE LEARNED CIT(A) IS ERRONEOUS BOTH ON FACTS AND IN LAW IN SO FAR AS IT IS PREJUDICIAL TO THE ASSESSEE. 2. THE LEARNED CIT (A) ERRED IN DISMISSING THE APPEAL IN LIMINE AS THE APPEAL IS NOT E - FILED BY REFERRING TO CBDT CIRCULAR NO.20/2016 , DT.26.05.2016 WHICH IS NOT APPLICABLE TO THE FACTS OF THE ASSESSEE CASE. THE LEARNED CIT(A) FAILED TO APPRECIATE THAT AS PER THE CBDT NOTIFICATION NO.11 /2016, DT. 0 1.03.2016 THE ASSESSEE HAS AN OPTION TO FILE THE APPEAL IN PAPER FORM AND THEREFORE THE A PPEAL IS IN ORDER. 3. THE LEARNED CIT (A) ERRED IN NOT REFERRING TO THE EXPLANATION FILED FOR NOT FILING THE APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY AND SUBMISSIONS FILED IN THE APPEAL AND THEREBY ERRED IN DISMISSING THE APPEAL IN LIMINE. I.T.A. NO. 1730 /HYD/1 8 P.S. NAIDU (HUF) 3 4. ANY OTHER GROUND THAT MAY BE URGED AT THE TIME OF HEARING. 5. BEFORE US, THE LD. AR OF THE ASSESSEE SUBMITTED THAT AS PER THE NOTIFICATION ISSUED BY CBDT VIDE NOTIFICATION NO. 11/2016, DATED 01/ 03/2016 WITH RESPECT TO FILING OF APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY BEFORE THE CIT(A), THE ASSESSEE HAS FILED THE RETURN OF INCOME BEFORE THE CIT(A) IN THE PAPER FORM. HE FURTHER SUBMITTED THAT AS PER THE NOTIFICATION CLAUSE 2(A), A PERSON WHO IS REQUIRED TO FURNISH RETURN OF INCOME ELECTRONICALLY UNDER SUB - RULE (3) OF RULE 12, THEN THE ASSESSEE IS REQU IRED TO FILE APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY AND AS PER CLAUSE 2(B), IN CASE WHERE THE ASSESSEE HAS THE OPTION TO FURNISH THE RETURN OF INCOME IN PAPER FORM, THEN THE ASSESSEE HAS THE OPTION TO FILE THE APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY IN ACCORDANCE WITH CLAUSE (A) OF SUB - RULE (2) OR IN PAPER FORM. COPY OF THE SAID NOTIFICATION IS AVAILABLE ON RECORD. 6. THE LD. DR, ON THE OTHER HAND, RELIED ON THE ORDER OF CIT(A). 7. CONSIDERED THE RIVAL SUBMISSIONS AND PERUSED THE MATERIAL ON RECORD. WE FIND THAT THE CIT(A) DISMISSED THE APPEAL OF THE ASSESSEE ON TECHNICAL GROUNDS I.E. THE ASSESSEE HAS NOT FILED THE APPEAL ELECTRONICALLY AND DECIDED WITHOUT GOING INTO THE MERITS OF THE CASE. 7.1 ON PERUSAL OF THE CIRCULAR NO. 20/2016, ALL THE ASSESSEES ARE ADVISED TO FILE THE E - APPEAL AND WHOEVER FILED MANUAL APPEAL, THEY CAN FILE E - APPEAL BEFORE 15/06/2016 IN ORDER TREAT THE SAME AS FILED WITHIN TIME. WE OBSERVE THAT THIS IS COMPLIANCE ADVISE AND THE ASSESSEES WHO ARE FILING THE E - APPEAL SUBSEQUENT TO 15/06/2016, THEY WILL BE TREATED A S I.T.A. NO. 1730 /HYD/1 8 P.S. NAIDU (HUF) 4 APPEAL FILED BELATEDLY. THEREFORE, CIT(A) SHOULD NOT HAVE DISMISSED THE APPEAL IN - LIMINE , RATHER, H E SHOULD HAVE ASKED THE ASSESSEE TO COMPLY WITH THE DIRECTIONS AS PER CIRCULAR NO. 20/2016 AND HE COULD HAVE GIVEN ONE MORE OPPORTUNITY TO ASSESSEE TO E - F ILE THE APPEAL. WE HAVE NOT SATISFIED WITH THE EXPLANATION OFFERED BY THE ASSESSEE NOT TO E - FILE THE APPEAL. AS PER THE CBDT CIRCULAR NO. 20/2016, ALL THE APPEALS HAVE TO BE E - FILED. THEREFORE, WE DIRECT THE ASSESSEE TO FILE THE APPEAL THROUGH E - FILING AND DIRECT THE CIT(A) TO ACCEPT THE E - APPEAL AFRESH AND ADJUDICATE THE MATTER ON MERIT . ACCORDINGLY, GROUNDS RAISED BY THE ASSESSEE ARE ALLOWED FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES. 8 . IN TH E RESULT, APPEAL OF THE ASSESSEE IS TREATED AS ALLOWED FOR STATISTICAL PURPOSES. PRONOUNCED IN THE OPEN COURT ON 9 T H JANU ARY , 201 9 . SD/ - ( P. MADHAVI DEVI ) JUDICIAL MEMBER SD/ - ( S. RIFAUR RAHMAN ) ACCOUNTANT MEMBER HYDERABAD, DATED 9 TH JANUARY , 201 9 . KV COPY FORWARDED TO: 1. SHRI P.S. NAIDU (HUF), S/SHRI K. VASANTKUMAR, AV RAGHURAM, P. VINOD & M. NEELIMA DEVI, ADVOCATES, 610 BABUKHAN ESTATE, BASHEERBAGH, HYDERABAD 500 001. 2 . AC IT, CIRCLE 7 ( 1 ) , HYDERABAD . 3 . CIT (A) - 3 , HYDERABAD 4. PR. CIT 3 , HYDERABAD 5. THE DR, ITAT, HYDERABAD 6. GUARD FILE