The Ahmedabad Bench of Income Tax Appellate Tribunal ( ITAT ) orders rehearing and imposed ₹10,000 on Revenue as Commissioner of Income Tax(Appeals)[CIT(A)] dismisses appeal as time-barred despite extended deadline.
Seema Ajay Ranka,appellant-assessee, challenged the order passed by CIT(A), National Faceless Assessment Centre ( NFAC ) dated 17.09.2023 for the Assessment Year 2013-14.This is the second appeal before the tribunal. In the first round, the CIT(A) passed an ex-parte order on 28-12-2016 due to no representation.
Comprehensive Guide of Law and Procedure for Filing of Income Tax Appeals, Click Here
The ITAT set aside the order, directing the CIT(A) to reconsider the case with a hearing. The CIT(A) provided hearings on 04-01-2021, 19-12-2022, 28-07-2023, and 29-08-2023, but dismissed the appeal on 17-09-2023, resulting in a 100-day delay in filing the current appeal. The CIT(A)’s order did not reference the Tribunal’s direction or allow the assessee to explain the delay.
The assessee’s counsel stated there was no delay in filing the appeal before the CIT(A). The appeal was filed in physical form on 08.03.2016, and e-filing was completed by 14.06.2016, within the extended deadline of 15.06.2016 as per Circular No. 20/2016.
The counsel also noted that an appeal for the assessment year 2012-13 was pending after migrating to faceless appeal format, with a petition for an early hearing filed on 21-10-2022 with the National Faceless Appeal Centre. Given these circumstances, the counsel requested that the present appeal be set aside to the NFAC for adjudication on merits with a proper hearing opportunity.
Comprehensive Guide of Law and Procedure for Filing of Income Tax Appeals, Click Here
The two member bench comprising T.R. Senthil Kumar ( Judicial Member ) and Annapurna Gupta ( Accountant Member ) reviewed the submissions and the impugned order passed by the NFAC. It noted that the appeal was filed on 14-06-2016 and migrated to NFAC, but the CIT(A) did not mention the ITAT’s order from 01-10-2018, which had set aside the matter for fresh consideration.
The CIT(A) dismissed the appeal as time-barred, ignoring the physical filing on 08-03-2016 and the extended deadline for e-filing under Circular No. 20/2016, which allowed filing up to 15-06-2016.
The appellate tribunal found that the CIT(A) failed to consider the Circular and dismissed the appeal without addressing the merits or giving proper hearing opportunities. It also noted that the NFAC did not follow the Circular, causing unnecessary delays.
Comprehensive Guide of Law and Procedure for Filing of Income Tax Appeals, Click Here
It directed the CIT(A), NFAC, to reconsider the appeal on merits, give a proper hearing, and pass an order within three months. The bench also imposed a cost of Rs. 10,000/- on the Revenue for its casual approach.
In short,the appeal filed by the assessee was allowed for statistical purposes.
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