Shantilal Vs ITO (ITAT Chennai)
The Chennai Bench of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) allowed the appeals filed by the assessee and held that the levy of late fee under Section 234E of the Income Tax Act for periods prior to 01.06.2015 was unsustainable in law. The Tribunal also held that the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) [CIT(A)] erred in dismissing the appeals as time-barred.
The assessee, an individual engaged in the retail business of electronic products, had filed TDS statements for various quarters pertaining to Assessment Years 2014-15 and 2015-16 belatedly. These TDS statements were processed under Section 200A of the Act on 30.05.2014 and 31.03.2015, and late filing fees under Section 234E were levied. Subsequently, the assessee filed corrected TDS statements, following which the Centralized Processing Centre (CPC) passed rectification orders under Section 154 read with Section 200A on 28.03.2025, reiterating the same levy of fees under Section 234E.
The assessee challenged the rectification orders before the CIT(A). However, the CIT(A) dismissed the appeals on the ground of limitation, holding that the assessee ought to have challenged the original intimations issued under Section 200A rather than the subsequent rectification orders. According to the CIT(A), the rectification orders did not provide a fresh or independent cause of action, and therefore the appeals were not maintainable.
