M/s Silver City Housing and Infrastructure Limited, Chandigarh V. JCIT (TDS), Chandigarh

ITA 251/CHANDI/2017

• Counselvise Citation: [2017] 128 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 5120 (ITAT-CHANDIGARH)
• Duration Of Justice: 3 month(s) 18 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 26-05-2017
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Allowed
• Bench Allotted: Not Allotted
• Assessment Year: 2011-2012
• Appeal Filed On: 07-02-2017
• Result in Favour of: Assessee
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: MANJIT SINGH
• Keywords: Reasonable cause; Condonation of delay
• Section: 273B

Judgement Text

1 IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL CHANDIGARH BENCHES, CHANDIGARH BEFORE SHRI SANJAY GARG, JUDICIAL MEMBER & MS. ANNAPURNA GUPTA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER ITA NO. 250/CHD/2017 ASSESSMENT YEAR: 2011-12 M/S SRBS ENTERTAINMENT, VS. THE JCIT (TDS), CHANDIGARH CHANDIGARH PAN NO. AABFE7527M & ITA NO. 251/CHD/2017 ASSESSMENT YEAR: 2011-12 M/S SILVER CITY HOUSING AND VS. THE JCIT (TDS), INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED, CHANDIGARH CHANDIGARH PAN NO. AAKCS4654H (APPELLANT) (RESPONDENT) APPELLANT BY : SH. TEJ MOHAN SINGH RESPONDENT BY : SH. MANJIT SINGH DATE OF HEARING : 22.05.2017 DATE OF PRONOUNCEMENT : 26.05.2017 ORDER PER SANJAY GARG, JUDICIAL MEMBER: THE ABOVE CAPTIONED APPEALS HAVE BEEN PREFERRED BY TWO DIFFERENT PERSONS AGAINST THE DIFFERENT ORDERS OF EVEN DATE 2 6.8.2016 OF THE 2 COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX (APPEALS)-1 [HEREINAFTER REFERRED TO AS CIT(A)], CHANDIGARH. SINCE, IDENTICAL ISSUE IS INV OLVED IN BOTH THE APPEALS WHICH IS RELATING TO THE LEVY / CONFIRMATION OF PEN ALTY U/S 272A(2)(K) OF THE INCOME-TAX ACT, 1961 (IN SHORT 'THE ACT'), HENC E, FOR THE SAKE OF CONVENIENCE, BOTH THE APPEALS HAVE BEEN HEARD TOGET HER AND ARE BEING DISPOSED OFF WITH THIS COMMON ORDER. 2. BOTH THE APPEALS ARE TIME BARRED BY 83 DAYS. APP LICATIONS FOR CONDONATION OF DELAY HAVE BEEN FILED WHEREIN IDENTI CAL GROUNDS HAVE BEEN TAKEN. IT HAS BEEN PLEADED THAT THE ASSESSEES C.A. NAMELY SHRI VINEET KHURANA COULD NOT FILE THE APPEALS IN TIME DUE TO S ERIOUS HEALTH ISSUES OF HIS FATHER AND BROTHER AND EVEN THEY HAVE TO BE HOS PITALIZED. THE APPLICATIONS ARE SUPPORTED WITH THE AFFIDAVIT OF T HE SAID C.A. SHRI VINEET KHURANA AND ALSO WITH THE MEDICAL RECORD OF SHRI VA RINDER KUMAR, HIS BROTHER. CONSIDERING THE ABOVE AVERMENTS, WHICH ARE DULY SUPPORTED WITH THE AFFIDAVIT OF THE C.A. OF THE ASSESSEE AND MEDIC AL RECORDS, HIS APPLICATIONS BOTH THE APPEALS FOR CONDONATION OF DE LAY ARE HEREBY ALLOWED. NOW COMING TO THE MERITS OF THE CASE, WE TAKE THE F ACTS FROM ITA NO. 250/CHD/2017 IN THE CASE OF SBBS ENTERTAINMENT, CHA NDIGARH VS. JCIT IN ITA NO. 250/CHD/2017. 3. THE BRIEF FACTS RELATING TO THE ISSUE ARE THAT O N PERUSAL OF THE INFORMATION AVAILABLE WITH HIS OFFICE, THE ASSESSIN G OFFICER NOTED THAT APPELLANT PERSON RESPONSIBLE HAD FAILED TO FILE Q UARTERLY TDS RETURN OF THE 4 TH QUARTER BY DUE DATE. IN RESPONSE TO THE PENALTY NO TICE U/S 272A(2)(K) OF THE ACT, THE PERSON RESPONSIBLE / APPELLANT DID NOT APPEAR BEFORE THE ASSESSING OFFICER. THE ASSESSING OFFICER, THEREFORE, AS 3 PER THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 272A(2)(K) OF THE ACT IMPOSED PENALTY OF RS. 32,000/- ON THE APPELLANT. 4. IN THE APPELLATE PROCEEDINGS BEFORE THE LD. CIT( A), THE APPELLANT SUBMITTED THAT TAX WAS DEDUCTED AT SOURCE AND DEPOS ITED TO THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNT BUT THE TDS RETURN WERE FILED LATE DUE TO N ON AVAILABILITY OF THE PAN DETAILS OF THE PAYEES. THE LD. CIT(A), HOWEVE R, WAS NOT CONVINCED WITH THE ABOVE EXPLANATION GIVEN BY THE ASSESSEE. H E OBSERVED THAT THE APPELLANT WAS REQUIRED TO MANDATORY FILE THE TDS RE TURN WITHIN PRESCRIBED PERIOD AS PER LAW. HE ACCORDINGLY, CONFIRMED THE PE NALTY SO LEVIED BY THE ASSESSING OFFICER. 5. BEING AGGRIEVED BY THE ABOVE CONFORMATION OF PEN ALTY, THE ABOVE NAMED APPELLANT HAS CAME IN APPEAL BEFORE US. 6. WE HAVE HEARD THE RIVAL SUBMISSIONS. THE LD. COU NSEL FOR THE APPELLANT HAS BROUGHT OUR ATTENTION TO THE WRITTEN SUBMISSIONS FILED BY THE APPELLANT BEFORE THE LD. CIT(A). IT HAS BEEN DULY E XPLAINED THEREIN THAT NOW A DAYS THE ONLINE RETURNS ARE FILED / UPLOADED. IN THE REQUIRED COLUMN, THE MENTIONING OF THE PAN NUMBER OF THE DEDUCTEE IS MANDATORY AND THAT THE RETURN CAN NOT BE UPLOADED WITHOUT MENTIONING O F THE PAN NUMBER. SINCE THE PAN NUMBERS OF SOME PERSONS WERE NOT AVAI LABLE WITH THE APPELLANT AT THE PRESCRIBED TIME OF FILING OF RETUR N, HENCE, THE RETURNS COULD NOT BE UPLOADED IN TIME. THE RETURNS WERE UPLOADED AS SOON AS THE APPELLANT GOT THE PAN NUMBERS OF THE RESPECTIVE DED UCTEES. THE LD. COUNSEL FOR THE ASSESSEE, THEREFORE, HAS SUBMITTED THAT THE DELAY IN UPLOADING / FILING OF THE TDS WAS NOT INTENTIONAL B UT THERE WAS A REASONABLE CAUSE FOR THE DELAY IN FILING THE RETURN S. HE HAS, THEREFORE, 4 PLEADED THAT THE PENALTY IS NOT INVITED IN THE CASE OF THE APPELLANT AS THE APPELLANT HAS SHOWN REASONABLE CAUSE FOR THE DELAY IN FILING THE RETURN, WHICH IS DULY COVERED UNDER THE PROVISIONS OF SECTI ON 273B OF THE ACT. 7. THE CONTENTIONS OF THE LD. COUNSEL FOR THE ASSES SEE HAVE NOT BEEN REBUTTED BY THE REVENUE. THE APPELLANT HAS SHOWN RE ASONABLE CAUSE OF THE THE NON AVAILABILITY OF THE PAN NUMBERS OF THE DEDU CTEES FOR WHICH THE APPELLANT COULD NOT UPLOAD THE RETURNS IN TIME. IN OUR VIEW, THE PLEA TAKEN BY THE APPELLANT IS DULY COVERED WITHIN THE SCOPE O F THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 273B OF THE ACT AND CAN BE SAID TO BE A RE ASONABLE CAUSE FOR DELAY IN FILING THE RETURN. THE IMPUGNED PENALTY, IN OUR VIEW, IS NOT WARRANTED IN THIS CASE. WE ACCORDINGLY DELETE THE PENALTY LEVIED BY THE LOWER AUTHORITIES U/S 272A(2)(K) OF THE ACT. ITA NO. 251/CHD/2017 8 THE FACTS AND ISSUE INVOLVED IN THE CASE OF SILVE R CITY HOUSING AND INFRASTRUCTURE LTD., CHANDIGARH IN ITA NO. 251/CHD/ 2017 ARE EXACTLY IDENTICAL. IN VIEW OF OUR FINDINGS GIVEN ABOVE, TH E PENALTY LEVIED IN THE SAID CASE, IS ALSO HEREBY ORDERED TO BE DELETED. 9. IN THE RESULT, BOTH THE ABOVE CAPTIONED APPEALS ARE HEREBY ALLOWED. ORDER PRONOUNCED IN THE OPEN COURT ON 26.05.2017 SD/- SD/- ( ANNAPURNA GUPTA) (SANJAY GARG) ACCOUNTANT MEMBER JUDICIAL MEMBER DATED : 26 TH MAY, 2017 RKK 5 COPY TO: 1. THE APPELLANT 2. THE RESPONDENT 3. THE CIT 4. THE CIT(A) 5. THE DR