9911796707
TMI Blog2016 (10) TMI 502X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... W.P.Nos.11225 & 11226 of 2016, wherein they sought for a direction upon the Commissioner of Income Tax to withdraw the income tax assessment proceedings of the petitioners from the first respondent (Ms.Kalpalatha Rajan, I.R.S.,) and entrust the job to some other officer of the same cadre. The Writ Petitions were elaborately heard and were dismissed by a common order dated 23.06.2016. It appears that the said order has become final and the petitioners have preferred an appeal as against the assessment order before the Appellate Authority. 4. Earlier, the first respondent initiated penalty proceedings under Section 271F of the Act on 30.12.2015, by issuing a notice under Section 271F of the Act. In response there to, the petitioner/assessee filed her return of income for the relevant assessment years admitting income under different levels for the respective assessment years. When the earlier Writ Petitions were pending before this Court, the petitioner made a representation to the respondent stating that she has filed the return of income and assessment orders have been passed and, hence the penalty proceedings initiated may be dropped. Though the representation dated 23.05.2016 w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... did not take any stand either accepting or denying the specific averments made by the petitioner against her. In that regard, the learned Senior counsel referred to the averments set out in the rejoinder filed by the petitioner to the counter in which elaborate averments have been made stating as to how the decisions relied on by the first respondent in the counter affidavit are not applicable to the facts of the present case. 7. Mr.T.Pramod Kumar Chopda, learned counsel appearing for the Revenue submitted that the petitioner did not file the returns and therefore, penalty proceedings under Section 271F was initiated and it is only thereafter the petitioner filed her return of income admitting taxable income for the above referred assessment years. It is further submitted that Section 275 of the Act imposes the time period for imposing penalties and the petitioner's case falls under Section 275(1)(c), as it has to be completed by the end of the financial year in which the proceedings, in the course of which, action for imposing of penalty was initiated or within six months from the end of the month, from which the action of penalty is initiated. It is therefore, submitted that ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e petitioner/husband only on 02.06.2015, as accepted by the first respondent in the intimation dated 30.09.2016. 9. Heard the learned counsels appearing for the parties and perused the materials placed on record. 10. Section 271F of the Act deals with penalty for failure to furnish the return of income, it states that if a person, who is required to furnish the return of his income, as required under Section 139(1) of the Act or by the provisos to that Section, fails to furnish such return before the end of the relevant assessment year, the Assessing Officer may direct that such person shall pay, by way of penalty, a sum of five thousand rupees; Section 273B deals with penalty not to be imposed in certain cases, it states that notwithstanding anything contained in the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1) of Section 271, Section 271A, Section 271AA, Section 271B, Section 271BA, Section 271BB, Section 271C, Section 271CA, Section 271D, Section 271E, Section 271F, etc., no penalty shall be imposable on the person or the assessee, as the case may be, for any failure referred to in the said provision, if he proves that there was a reasonable cause for that failure. Section 271F ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s letter dated 19.05.2015, stating that due to ill-health and consequent surgery, he could not file returns and requested for taking photostat copies of the documents seized/impounded in their case. The first respondent admitted that this was facilitated and the petitioner/husband has taken copies of all required books and documents seized/impounded in the petitioner's case on 02.06.2015. 16. Thus, the fact that the petitioner has not filed the return of income was well within the knowledge of the first respondent, even at the time, when notice under Section 153A of the Act was issued. It is not as if, immediately thereafter, proceedings under Section 271F were initiated, but in the interregnum, the petitioner's representation dated 19.05.2015, was taken note of. The first respondent records in her order that in the representation, it was specifically stated that they could not file their return due to ill-health and consequent surgery. 17. That apart, the first respondent records that there is a request for furnishing the photocopies of the documents, which were seized/impounded during the search. This request made by the petitioner's/husband's letter dated 19.05 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
