International Resources for Fairer Trade Vs Union of India & Ors. (Bombay High Court)
The Bombay High Court heard a writ petition filed by International Resources for Fairer Trade challenging the order dated 9th November 2023 passed by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions), Mumbai. The petitioner sought condonation of a delay in uploading its audit report in Form No. 10B for Assessment Year 2015-16, which had been rejected on the ground that no sufficient cause was shown for the delay. The petitioner is a public charitable trust established in 1995 and approved under sections 12A/12AA of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
As per section 12A(b) of the IT Act, if a trust’s total income exceeds the maximum non-taxable amount, the trust is required to get its books audited and file Form No. 10B on or before the due date for filing the income tax return under section 139. For AY 2015-16, the petitioner obtained its audit report on 31st July 2015 and filed it with the Assistant Charity Commissioner, Mumbai, on 19th August 2015. The income tax return was filed on 15th September 2015 and revised on 16th September 2015, but the audit report was inadvertently not uploaded and verified on the income tax portal within the prescribed period.
