TMI Blog2023 (4) TMI 1224X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or finding out with reference to any judicial precedent in respect of provisions of the relevant Act. Accordingly. we restore this issue back to the file of the Ld. Assessing Officer with the direction to find out from the relevant PF authorities about the term every month as mentioned in clause 38 of the employees provident fund scheme. Similarly, he may find out from the ESI Authorities. Appeal of the assessee is allowed for statistical purposes. - ITA No. 252/MUM/2023 - - - Dated:- 26-4-2023 - SHRI ABY T VARKEY (JUDICIAL MEMBER) AND SHRI OM PRAKASH KANT (ACCOUNTANT MEMBER) For the Assessee : Mr. Sunil Hirawat, AR For the Revenue : Ms. Richa Gulati, DR ORDER PER OM PRAKASH KANT, AM This appeal by the as ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ble Supreme Court in the case of Checkmate Services Pvt. Ltd. v. CIT in Civil Appeal No. 2833 of 2016, observing as under : 4. Having pursued the rectification order, the grounds of appeal and the written submissions, the issue of admissibility of payment of employees' contribution of SIC/PF beyond the due date as per the relevant Statute, raised through ground number 1 is hot tenable in view of decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Checkmate Services pvt. Ltd. Vs CIT in Civil Appeal No. 2833 of 2016 with CA No. 2830/2016, CA No. 159/2019, CA No.2832/2016 and CA No: 2831/2016 vide judgment dated 12.10.2022, wherein it was held that deduction us 36(1)(va) of the IT Act is admissible only of the amount so received ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ssible thereon) for the time being payable to the employees other than an excluded employee, and in respect of which provident fund contributions are payable as the Central Government may fix, he shall within fifteen days of the close of every month pay the same to the Fund by separate bank drafts or cheques on account of contributions and administrative charge:] [Provided that if the payment is made by a cheque, it should be drawn only on the local bank of the place in which deposits are made.] Provided further that where there is no branch of the Reserve Bank or the ' State Bank of India] at the station where the *[factory or other establishment] is situated, the employer shall pay to the Fund the amount mentioned above by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed that the employer is required to deposit the PF/ESI contribution of the assessee within 15 days of the close of every month. According to the Ld. Counsel, term every month is the month of payment of the salary/remuneration to the employee and not the month for which salary or wages were due to the employee. He accordingly submitted that if the term month is taken as the month of payment of the wages/salary to the employee, then all the payment of employee s contribution are within the due date. The Ld. Counsel has provided a list of the monthly payment for provident fund and ESI, which is reproduced as under: 4. On the contrary, the Ld. Departmental Representative (DR) submitted that the term every month mentioned in sectio ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e time limit for making payment in respect of contribution to the provident fund to be 15 days from the close of the month concerned. However, the issue here is whether the month should be considered to be the month to which the wages relates or the month in which the actual disbursement of the wages is made, we are of the considered opinion that the expression month should mean here the month during which the wages/salary is actually disbursed irrespective of month to which the same relates. Thus, the scheme of the government in this regard is that once a deduction is made in respect of the employees' contribution to the provident fund from the salary/wages of the employee or the employer also makes his contribution, factually at t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ke appropriate action accordingly. 5.1 In our opinion, it will be appropriate if the term every month specified in Provident Fund scheme, whether it is the month for which salary/wages are due or month of the payment is referred to Relevant Authoritiesfor finding out with reference to any judicial precedent in respect of provisions of the relevant Act. Accordingly. we restored this issue back to the file of the Ld. Assessing Officer with the direction to find out from the relevant PF authorities about the term every month as mentioned in clause 38 of the employees provident fund scheme. Similarly, he may find out from the ESI Authorities. It is needless to mention that the assessee shall be afforded adequate opportunity of being h ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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