The Kerala High Court directed to keep the recovery proceedings in abeyance until disposing pending stay application by the Income Tax Appellate Authority.
Mkd Taluk Govt Employees Co-Operative Society Ltd, the petitioner challenged the assessment order for the assessment years 2020-2021 under the Income Tax Act,1961 the appellant had preferred appeal, application for stay and delay condonation application pending disposal of the appeal.
When recovery steps were initiated by the respondents during the pendency of the statutory appeal and stay application, the appellant approached the writ court, which was disposed of by a Single Judge by judgment dated 13.10.2023 relegating the appellant to the alternate remedy of appeal and directing the Appellate Authority to dispose of the delay condonation application, stay application or the appeal within two months.
The appellant impugned the judgment of the Single Judge solely on the ground that while disposing of the Writ Petition, the Single Judge did not grant a stay of recovery proceedings till the First Appellate Authority considered the delay condonation application/ stay application/appeal as directed by the Single Judge.
Since the Single Judge had relegated the appellant to the alternate remedy before the statutory authority it was incumbent upon the learned Judge to protect the appellant from recovery proceedings pending disposal of the application by the respondent appellate authority.
A division bench of Dr Justice A K Jayasankaran Nambiar & Dr Justice Kauser Edappagath modified the impugned judgment of the Single Judge to the limited extent of clarifying that pending disposal of the delay condonation application, stay application or appeal whichever is earlier, by the appellate authority, the recovery proceedings against the appellant for recovery of the amounts confirmed against him by assessment order shall be kept in abeyance.
Subscribe Taxscan Premium to view the JudgmentSupport our journalism by subscribing to Taxscan premium. Follow us on Telegram for quick updates
