Charchit Garg Vs ITO (ITAT Indore)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, Indore Bench adjudicated an appeal filed against an order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) confirming disallowance of deduction under Section 80JJAA of the Income-tax Act, 1961 for Assessment Year 2023–24. The disallowance arose solely on the ground that the prescribed audit report in Form No. 10DA was not filed within the time prescribed under the Act and the Rules.
The assessee, an individual engaged in the manufacturing of apparels, filed the return of income on 18.10.2023 declaring total income after claiming deduction of ₹4,58,090 under Section 80JJAA. The tax liability was fully discharged. While processing the return under Section 143(1) on 31.07.2024, the Central Processing Centre disallowed the deduction on the ground that Form No. 10DA was not furnished by the due date of 30.09.2023. As a result, the total income was enhanced by ₹4,58,090.
Before the appellate authority, the assessee submitted that all substantive conditions under Section 80JJAA were fulfilled, that Form No. 10DA had been filed electronically on 05.10.2023 and revised on 21.10.2023 to correct a technical error, and that the form was available on the income-tax portal much before the return was processed. It was argued that the requirement of filing Form No. 10DA within the prescribed time was procedural and that the deduction could not be denied on this technical ground. The Commissioner (Appeals), however, held that the statutory timeline was mandatory and confirmed the disallowance.
