Sujata Gupta Vs ITO (ITAT Jaipur)
The appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Jaipur, arose from an order dated 17 January 2024 passed by the CIT(A), which had dismissed the assessee’s appeal against an order issued under Section 143(1) of the Income Tax Act on 2 February 2023. The assessee, a retired employee of State Bank of Bikaner & Jaipur (SBBJ), challenged the denial of exemption on leave encashment received upon superannuation.
Before considering the merits, the Tribunal dealt with a substantial delay in filing the appeal. The appeal was presented on 13 June 2025, well beyond the prescribed limitation period. The assessee sought condonation of delay, stating through an affidavit that, being a 62-year-old retired woman, she had consulted several tax professionals before deciding to file the appeal. The Tribunal noted that the affidavit remained unchallenged and accepted the explanation. Consequently, the delay in filing the appeal was condoned.
On merits, the assessee submitted that she had received ₹14,24,413 as leave encashment on retirement and was entitled to exemption under Section 10(10AA) of the Act. Reliance was placed on CBDT Notification No. 31/2023 dated 24 May 2023, which increased the exemption limit for non-government employees to ₹25 lakh. It was argued that the notification was beneficial in nature and should be applied retrospectively, and that the CIT(A) had erred in not extending the benefit while upholding the assessment order.
