In a recent ruling, the Kolkata bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) granted the assessee one more opportunity to be heard, despite the assessee having ignored notices from the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) [CIT(A)] on four occasions, to uphold the interest of justice.
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The assessee, Mitalben Rahulkumar Shah, had filed an appeal before the CIT(A), against the assessment order for the Assessment Year (A.Y.) 2012-13.
CIT(A) issued notices under Section 250 of the Income Tax Act, 1961, on 09.11.2023, 15.03.2024, 29.05.2024, and 10.06.2024, asking the assessee to provide explanations and supporting documents. However, the assessee failed to respond to any of the notices, and the CIT(A) thereby dismissed the appeal.
Aggrieved by the dismissal of the appeal by the CIT(A), the assessee moved to the ITAT.
In his written submission, the assessee argued that the appeal should not have been dismissed without discussing the actual issues. It was also contended that the assessment was not valid, as the notice had not been properly served on the assessee.
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Meanwhile, Ashok Kumar Suthar, the counsel representing the revenue, countered that the assessee did not reply to any of the four notices issued to him and did not give any reason for the delay. He added that the CIT(A) was right to dismiss the appeal based on this non-compliance.
After considering the arguments from both sides, the bench, led by Sonjoy Sarma (Judicial Member) and Rajesh Kumar (Accountant Member), evaluated the matter in detail.
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The bench noted that although multiple opportunities were given to the assessee to submit the necessary documents, the assessee failed to respond or provide the required submissions.
However, in the interest of justice, the bench directed the CIT(A) to reconsider the matter and provide a fresh hearing. The bench also warned the assessee that if he fails to appear or justify his absence, the Assessing Officer (AO) may initiate penalty proceedings under the law.
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