SANT SHRI AASARAMJI AASHRAM TRUST, YAVATMAL V. CIT(E), PUNE

ITA 807/PUN/2024

• Counselvise Citation: [2024] 100 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 0472 (ITAT-PUNE)
• Duration Of Justice: 3 month(s) 17 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 04-08-2024
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Dismissed
• Bench Allotted: B
• Next Hearing Date: 23-07-2024
• Assessment Year: misc
• Appeal Filed On: 17-04-2024
• Result in Favour of: Revenue
• Court: TRIBUNAL

Judgement Text

IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL PUNE BENCH ‘B’, PUNE BEFORE SHRI INTURI RAMA RAO, JUDICIAL MEMBER AND MS. ASTHA CHANDRA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER आयकर अपील सं. / ITA No.807/PUN/2024 Sant Shri Aasaramji Aashram Trust, Sankat Mochan Road, Yewatmal – 445001, Maharashtra PAN : AAFTS3194Q .......अपीलाथ / Appellant बनाम / V/s. CIT(Exemption), Pune ...... यथ / Respondent Assessee by : Shri Naimish Dixit Revenue by : Shri Sourabh Nayak स ु नवाई क तार ख / Date of Hearing : 24.07.2024 घोषणा क तार ख / Date of Pronouncement :05.08.2024 आदेश / ORDER PER INTURI RAMA RAO, AM: This is an appeal filed by the assessee trust directed against the order of ld. Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions), Pune dated 20.02.2024 denying grant of registration u/s.12AB of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter also called ‘the Act’). 2. The appellant is a Trust registered u/s.12AB(1)(b) of the Act. It had applied for grant of registration under clause (iii) of section 12A(1)(ac) of the Act on 30.09.2023. The ld.CIT(Exemptions), in order to verify the genuineness of activities of appellant trust issued notice through ITBA portal on 22.11.2023 calling for certain details. In response to the notice, the appellant trust filed the details. Eventually, 2 ITA No.807/PUN/2024 Sant Shri Aasaramji Aashram Trust the said application was rejected by the ld. CIT(Exemptions) vide impugned order 20.02.2024 on the ground that the provisional registration was cancelled on 20.09.2023, as the appellant trust has filed the application in Form 10AB on 30.03.2023, i.e. after the due date. The ld. CIT(Exemptions) was of the opinion that benefit of CBDT Circular No.06/2023 cannot be extended to the appellant trust as the earlier application was not rejected on the ground of delay. 3. Being aggrieved, the appellant trust is in appeal before us in the present appeal. 4. The ld. AR submits that the provisional approval which was granted to the appellant trust vide order dated 27.05.2021 is valid upto 31.03.2024 and the appellant trust is allowed to file application in Form No.10AB, six months before its expiry. He submits that since the application was filed on 30.09.2023, the application was well within time, therefore, the CIT(Exemptions) cannot reject the grant of approval on the ground of delay. 5. On the other hand, the ld. Sr. DR supporting the order of CIT(Exemptions) submits that no interference by this Tribunal is called for. 6. We heard the rival submissions and perused the material on record. The issue that arises for our consideration is to determine the question whether there is a delay in filing Form No.10AB in terms of provisions of clause (iii) of section 12A(1)(ac) the Income-tax Act, 1961 as extended by CBDT Circulars. The appellant trust was formed with the charitable objects, granted provisional registration on 27.05.2021 and the same came to be cancelled vide order dated 20.09.2023. The appellant trust applied for grant of regular registration afresh in Form 10AB on 30.09.2023. The ld. CIT(Exemptions) was of the opinion that 3 ITA No.807/PUN/2024 Sant Shri Aasaramji Aashram Trust since the earlier application was rejected vide order dated 20.09.2023 not on the grounds of delay but on merits for non-compliance with the notice issued through ITBA portal calling for certain information, the benefit of CBDT Circular No.06/2023, dt. 24.05.2023 cannot be given. He further observed that since the provisional registration was already cancelled vide order dated 20.09.2023, the fresh application Form in 10AB filed on 30.09.2023 cannot be treated as continuation of the provisional registration granted on 27.05.2021. He further proceeded to hold that in the absence of provisional registration, the application filed on 30.09.2023 cannot be accepted. We find from the record that the present application form in 10AB was filed under clause (iii) of section 12A(1)(ac) on 30.09.2023. The relevant provisions of the Act reads as under : “(iii) where the trust or institution has been provisionally registered under section 12AB, at least six months prior to expiry of period of the provisional registration or within six months of commencement of its activities, whichever is earlier.” 7. From the mere reading of the above clause, it is clear that when the application is made under clause (iii) of section 12A(1)(ac), it presupposes the existence of provisional registration. In the absence of any provisional registration, the application filed in Form 10AB under clause (iii) of section 12A(1)(ac) is invalid. In the circumstances, we do not find any illegality or infirmity in the order passed by the ld. CIT(Exemptions). Since the fresh application is invalid, we need not dwell into the issue whether there is a delay in filing the application form in 10AB or not. Therefore, we do not find any merit in the appeal filed by the assessee, accordingly stands dismissed. 4 ITA No.807/PUN/2024 Sant Shri Aasaramji Aashram Trust 8. In the result, the appeal filed by the assessee is dismissed. Order pronounced in the open court on 05 th August, 2024. Sd/- Sd/- ASTHA CHANDRA INTURI RAMA RAO JUDICIAL MEMBER ACCOUNTANT MEMBER प ु णे / Pune; दनांक / Dated : 05 th August, 2024 Satish आदेश क त!ल"प अ#े"षत/Copy of the Order is forwarded to : 1. अपीलाथ / The Appellant; 2. यथ / The Respondent; 3. The Pr.CIT concerned 4. DR, ITAT, ‘B’ Bench, Pune 5. गाड& फाईल / Guard file. आदेशान ु सार / BY ORDER, //स या"पत त// True Copy// व(र)ठ नजी स,चव / Sr. Private Secretary आयकर अपील य अ,धकरण, प ु णे / ITAT, Pune