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2024 (3) TMI 427 - ITAT DELHIPenalty u/s 271B - assessee had failed to get his account audited u/s 44AB - sufficient cause - The assessee explained that the delay in furnishing the Audit Report was due to the death of his elder brother, who managed the financial affairs, and his own critical medical condition during the relevant year. - HELD THAT:- Section 44AB casts an obligation upon the assessee to get accounts audited before the specified date and furnish by that date the report of such audit. It is not the case of the Revenue that the original return e-filed on 04.10.2013 was not within time prescribed u/s 139(1) of the Act. Section 139(5) of the Act permits an assessee to file revised return before the completion of assessment. Assessee has filed revised return within the legally permissible time along with Audit Report. During the course of assessment proceedings itself it was explained by the assessee that delay was caused due to the death of his elder brother who was looking after the financial affairs of the assessee’s business. Before the Ld. CIT(A) in reply uploaded on the ITBA Portal on 06.10.2021, it was submitted that the assessee himself was going through a critical medical condition in the year under consideration. It was also submitted that the delay in furnishing Audit Report in time was caused due to inadvertent mistake committed by his Chartered Accountant. The assessee’s explanation has merely been disbelieved. In our opinion, there was reasonable cause for failure in furnishing the Tax Audit Report in time. As stated earlier, it is not a case of not getting the accounts audited in time. We, therefore, hold that the impugned penalty u/s 271B is not exigible which we hereby vacate. Assessee appeal allowed.
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