Apurva Ashwin Desai Vs Addl./JCIT (ITAT Mumbai)
TDS Credit Cannot Be Denied for Reporting Mismatch; Rectification u/s 154 Allowed
The assessee was denied credit of tax deducted at source (TDS) despite the deductions being duly reflected in Form 26AS. The denial was based on an alleged mismatch between the sale consideration of one property as reported by the buyer in the TDS statement and the figure disclosed by the assessee in the return computation.
The Tribunal noted that TDS of ₹8,33,184 on rental income from HSBC Bank and ₹2,10,000 on sale of two residential flats were undisputedly deducted, deposited with the Government and clearly appearing in Form 26AS (as seen from the reproduced 26AS extract on page 3). The first appellate authority itself had accepted the correctness of rental TDS but still refused overall credit citing the value mismatch in one sale transaction.
It was held that such a mismatch in transaction value cannot be a ground to deny TDS credit in rectification proceedings under section 154. Once tax is deducted and credited to the Central Government and reflected in the assessee’s 26AS, denial of credit is a patent mistake apparent from the record. Any discrepancy in the deductor’s reporting cannot prejudice the deductee, nor can the Revenue re-examine the transaction value at the stage of granting TDS credit.
Since the assessee had disclosed the transactions and even claimed capital loss in the return, the issue did not involve any debatable or roving factual enquiry beyond the scope of section 154.
Accordingly, the Assessing Officer was directed to grant full TDS credit of ₹8,33,184 (rent) and ₹2,10,000 (property sales) strictly as per Form 26AS, and the assessee’s appeal was allowed.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT MUMBAI
