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2017 (9) TMI 1961 - AT - Income TaxPenalty u/s 271(1)(c) - Notice challenged in the absence of any specific mention in the show-cause notices issued under section 274 - whether the assessee is guilty of having “furnished inaccurate particulars of income” or of having “concealed particulars of such income”, the initiation of penalty proceedings - HELD THAT:- If the notice issued under section 274 is issued by the Assessing Officer in the standard printed proforma without striking out the irrelevant clause like in the present case, the same, in our opinion, cannot convey to the assessee as to which of the charges he has to respond and such notice issued by the Assessing Officer without application of mind is liable to treated as vague on the basis of which no penalty can be imposed on the assessee as held by the Hon’ble Karnataka High Court, inter alia, in the case of SSA’s Emerald Meadows [2015 (11) TMI 1620 - KARNATAKA HIGH COURT] and Manjunatha Cotton & Ginning Factory [2013 (7) TMI 620 - KARNATAKA HIGH COURT]. As in the view that the notices issued by the Assessing Officer under section 274 in the present case for both the years under consideration not being in accordance with law, the penalty orders passed by him in pursuance thereof are liable to be cancelled being invalid. We accordingly uphold the impugned orders of the ld. CIT(Appeals) cancelling the penalties imposed by the Assessing Officer under section 271(1)(c) for both the years under consideration although on different grounds. Voluntary declaration of his foreign Bank account before the Income Tax Department - As declaration made by the assessee surrendering his undisclosed income representing the amount lying in the overseas Bank account with HSBC Switzerland on 26.09.2011 without initiation of any action or issuance of any notice issued by the Income Tax Department was voluntary showing the bonafide of the assessee The contention as raised by the ld. counsel for the assessee in this regard is that any assessee as per the said Act thus could get away by paying tax @60% on the value of an undisclosed asset located outside India in the year 2015, while the assessee in the present case even after declaring his undisclosed asset located outside India in the year 2011 itself and finally paying tax on such value along with interest thereon, as the corresponding income was ultimately charged to tax in his hands in A.Ys. 2006-07 and 2007-08 could not avail the immunity provided in the said Act introduced in 2015. He has contended that the assessee having declared the income on account of undisclosed asset located outside India voluntarily in the year 2011 itself and having paid tax thereon along with interest thus is put in an adverse position as compared to the other assessees who did not make such declaration and finally got the benefit of the Act introduced in 2015. He has contended that going by the spirit of Rule of Equality before law, the benefit of immunity provided in the 2015 Act thus should be extended to the assessee and the orders of the ld. CIT(Appeals) cancelling the penalties imposed under section 271(1)(c) are liable to be upheld on this ground also. - Decided against revenue.
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