Dandeshwar Shankar Mandir Trust Vs Central Processing Centre (ITAT Mumbai)
Clerical Error in Timely 10B Cannot Kill 11 Exemption- Original 10B Filed Before Due Date; Revised Only Corrected a Mistake — Exemption Restored
Assessee, a religious/charitable trust registered u/s 12A, filed its return u/s 139(1) on 28.08.2017 declaring gross receipts of ₹31,79,940, application of income of ₹15,45,540 & accumulation of ₹2,42,865. CPC, while processing the return u/s 143(1), denied exemption u/s 11(1)(a) of ₹17,88,405 on the ground that Form 10B was not filed within the due date.
Before CIT(A), Assessee pointed out that Form 10B was filed before the due date on 01.09.2017, but due to inadvertence the figure of “income applied” was wrongly shown as Nil instead of ₹15,45,540. After CPC rejected rectification u/s 154, Assessee filed a revised Form 10B on 03.09.2019 correctly reflecting the applied income. CIT(A) nevertheless upheld the denial stating that the revised 10B was belated.
Tribunal examined both the original & revised Form 10B & noted that the only difference was the correction of a clear clerical error. Tribunal relied on the Gujarat High Court judgment in Parul Mahila Pragati Mandal (2025) 175 taxmann.com 922, which held that filing of Form 10B is procedural, & late filing cannot defeat a substantive exemption u/s 11 when the trust has otherwise fulfilled conditions & evidence exists in audited accounts.
