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2016 (10) TMI 358 - GUJARAT HIGH COURTCondonation of delay in filing o return - reasons for delay - petitioner contended that the documents were misplaced in the Chartered Accountant's office - Held that:- From the materials on record, we gather that admittedly, the return filed by the petitioner was late by merely seven months. In order to explain such delay, the petitioner contended that the documents were misplaced in the Chartered Accountant's office and he, therefore, could not have filed the return in time. He further stated that his wife was suffering from “some severe illness for which she was operated on 14.02.2012 and after her recovery, I was in a position to handover an another set of documents to my Chartered Accountant's office for filing return”. The explanation offered by the petitioner cannot be accepted unless sufficiently strong reasons are shown. It would not be possible to find fault with the Revenue authorities in exercising powers under Section 119 of the Act. Routine, liberal and overindulgent approach in condoning delay would open floodgates of applications, completely throwing the tax assessment and recovery machinery out of gear. We may recall, the grounds raised by the petitioner for delay of nearly seven months were that Chartered Accountant's office lost the papers and therefore, could not file return and further, that due to the illness of his wife, he could not follow filing of return with the Chartered Accountant. A minor or a few days' delay could perhaps be explained by suggesting that the Chartered Accountant's office lost the papers. The delay was substantial. Further, in the application that the petitioner filed, he only stated that his wife had some severe illness without specifying the nature of illness, its duration and the kind of treatment needed. These aspects would be relevant since the operation that the petitioner claimed his wife underwent, took-place on 14.02.2012 i.e. long after the due date for filing the return, in the end of July of previous year. Thus, very clearly, the illness of wife had nothing to do with the petitioner's missing the date for filing the return. This additional ground, therefore, also does not in any manner, explained the delay.
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