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TMI Blog2024 (1) TMI 24X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s an individual. He filed his return of income for the assessment year 2021-22 on 29/12/2021 by declaring an income of Rs. 1,45,89,089/- from capital gains and other sources and agriculture income of Rs. 3,49,984/-. The return was processed by the AO-CPC, Bengaluru, and intimation under section 143(1) Income Tax Act, 1961 ('the Act') was sent to the assessee on 02/06/2022 with a demand of Rs. 76,410/-. This demand was raised on account of variance in computation of interest under section 234A of the Act. Assessee filed a petition before AO-CPC, Bengaluru to rectify the same, but it was not considered by the AO-CPC, Bengaluru and levied the interest under section 234A of the Act and again issued the said intimation by reprocessing the very s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... did not agree with this contention of the assessee and held that in order to have the benefit of the decision of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of CIT vs. Prannoy Roy 309 ITR 231 (2009), though the assessee filed the return of income after the due date, he must have paid the taxes before the due date. Learned CIT(A) examined whether the payment of taxes by the assessee on 27/09/2021 was before the due date of filing of return of income in the light of the claim of the assessee under CBDT Circular No. 17/2021 [FNo. 225/49/2021/ITA-II], dated 09/09/2021, extending the due date for filing of the return of income to 31/12/2021 from 31/07/2021. Since the applicability of this circular extending the due date is restricted to the cases whe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of taxes, the focus being on the filing of the return of income. 7. We have gone through the record in the light of the submissions made on either side. But for the circular (supra), the due date for filing of return of income by the assessee was 31/07/2021. It is an admitted fact that the assessee paid the taxes on 27/09/2021, but filed the return of income on 29/12/2021. According to the assessee, vide Circular No. 17/2021, the due date for filing of the return of income stood extended till 31/12/2021 and in view of his payment of the taxes on 27/09/2021, his filing of the return before the extended due date is proper. The authorities below, however, did not concede this argument. 8. For the purpose of ascertaining the due date, it has ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y particular date and, therefore, it goes on varying on different dates even before the stated due date of 31/12/2021. This variance does not suggest any nexus to the purpose of extension of due date in respect of any class of assessees or to any particular period of time. Certainly, it could not be the intention of the Board that the extension of due date would be in such a state of flux to create various due dates for various assessees falling in the same category. 10. The purpose of issuing the circular as stated in the Preamble is that "on consideration of difficulties reported by the taxpayers and other stake holders in electronic filing of income tax returns and various reports of audits ...". The anomalous situation created by clari ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... reated a conflict in the shape of anomaly. In this situation, what is imperative is to read down clarification 1 inconsonance with the objective of the circular. 12. Extension of due date till such date as the interest liability exceeds Rs. 1 lakh will have the tendency to create various dates of due dates for various assessees and render the date given in the circular, namely, 31/12/2021 otiose. Such a result has no nexus either with the class of assessees because for the same class of assessees it is applicable at some time and it is not applicable at some time, or to the purposes for which the due date was extended. In such situation, going by the very purpose of extension of due date in consideration of the difficulties reported by the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... circular (supra) on the part of the assessee, in terms of the decision of the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Prannoy Roy (supra). 14. We are in agreement with the above submission of the learned AR. The clarification No. 1 of the circular is not clear as to the date on which the quantification of interest liability under section 234A of the Act has to be taken. But, when we read the circular as a whole in the light of the decision of the Hon'ble Apex Court in the case of Prannoy Roy (supra), the reasonable inference is that if the assessee deposits the taxes at a date at which the interest liability under section 234A of the Act, does not exceed Rs. 1 lakh, such an assessee is entitled to the extended period of due date and, therefore, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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