MUSLIM EDUCATIONAL TRUST,KOTTAYAM V. CIT(EXEMPTION). , ERNAKULAM

ITA 821/COCH/2025

AI Insights

The case involves the Muslim Educational Trust, a charitable trust, which appealed against the decision of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption), Kochi, denying them approval under section 80G of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the Assessment Year 2024-25. The Commissioner had rejected their application on the grounds that it was not filed within the stipulated six months from the commencement of activities or the expiry of provisional registration. The Tribunal found that the Commissioner did not specify when the trust's activities commenced, which is essential to assess the timeliness of the application. Consequently, the Tribunal remanded the case for a thorough re-evaluation.

• Counselvise Citation: [2025] 140 COUNSELVISE.COM (IT) 788858 (ITAT-COCHIN)
• Duration Of Justice: 28 day(s)
• Appeal Type: Income Tax Appeal
• Pronouncement Date: 28-11-2025
• Appeal Filed By: Assessee
• Order Result: Partly Allowed
• Bench Allotted: SMC
• Assessment Year: misc
• Appeal Filed On: 31-10-2025
• Laws Referred To: Income Tax Act, 1961
• Result in Favour of: Partly Allowed
• Court: TRIBUNAL
• Department Lawyers: SANJIT KUMAR DAS
• Assessee Lawyers: K. SURESH KUMAR VARMA
• Keywords: Charitable institution
• Section: 12A; 80G

Judgement Text

"IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL COCHIN BENCH BEFORE SHRI INTURI RAMA RAO, AM ITA No. 821/Coch/2025 Muslim Educational Trust .......... Appellant VII/198, Erattupetta, Kottayam 686121 [PAN: AACTM9743J] vs. Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption), Kochi.......... Respondent Assessee by: Shri K. Suresh Kumar Varma, CA Revenue by: Shri Sanjit Kumar Das, CIT-DR Date of Hearing: 27.11.2025 Date of Pronouncement: 28.11.2025 O R D E R This appeal filed by the assessee is directed against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption), Kochi dated 24.09.2025 for Assessment Year (AY) 2024-25 denying grant of approval u/s. 80G of Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter \"the Act\"). 2. Brief facts of the case are that the appellant is a charitable trust duly registered u/s. 12AB of the Act. The appellant had filed an application in Form 10AB on 09.03.2025 seeking approval u/s. 89G of the Act. The provisional approval under clause (ii) of clause (ac) of subsection (1) of section 12A in form 10AC was granted on 29.05.2023. The appellant had filed an application in Form 10AB seeking regular approval. However, the said application was rejected Printed from counselvise.com 2 ITA No. 821/Coch/2025 Muslim Educational Trust vide impugned order by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption) on the ground that the application was not filed within 6 months from the date of commencement of activities or expiry of the provisional registration. 3. Being aggrieved, the appellant is in appeal before this Tribunal in the present appeal. 4. I heard the rival contentions and perused the material available on record. On a careful perusal of the impugned order it would reveal that the application was filed u/s. 10AB seeking approval u/s. 80G of the Act was rejected by the learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption) solely on the ground that the application was filed belatedly and beyond the extended time, i.e. 20.06.2024. The proviso to clause (ix) of subsection (v) of section 80G provided that the application shall be filed within 6 months prior to the expiry of provisional approval or within 6 months from commencement of its activities, whichever is earlier. The impugned order is silent as to when the appellant had commenced the activities. There is no finding by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption) as to when the activities of the trust were commenced. Therefore, the matter is remanded back to the file of CIT(A) for de novo consideration. 5. In the result, the appeal filed by the assessee stands partly allowed for statistical purposes. Printed from counselvise.com 3 ITA No. 821/Coch/2025 Muslim Educational Trust Order pronounced in the open court on 28th November, 2025. Sd/- (INTURI RAMA RAO) ACCOUNTANT MEMBER Cochin, Dated: 28th November, 2025 n.p. Copy to: 1. The Appellant 2. The Respondent 3. The Pr. CIT concerned 4. The Sr. DR, ITAT, Cochin 5. Guard File Assistant Registrar ITAT, Cochin Printed from counselvise.com "