Case Law Details
Nileshwar Rangekallu Chethu Vs CIT (Kerala High Court)
Kerala High Court held that deduction under section 80P of the Income Tax Act is allowable only if the same is claimed via a valid return.
Facts- For the assessment year 2009-10, the appellant did not file any return of income. Believing that the appellant had income chargeable to tax that had escaped assessment, the Department issued a notice u/s. 148 of the IT Act to the appellant on 6.2.2012 requiring the appellant to furnish a return of income within 30 days of receipt of the notice. The appellant failed to file the return of income in response to the notice u/s. 148. A return was however filed by the appellant on 5.7.2012, which was much beyond the date for filing of return in terms of Section 139(4) of the IT Act.
The return of income for the assessment year 2009-10 should have been filed on or before 31.3.2011 in terms of Section 139(4) of the IT Act. Since the return of income was filed after the expiry of the time allowed u/s. 139(4) and much after the due date mentioned in the notice u/s. 148, AO treated the same as invalid and proceeded to complete the assessment in terms of Section 144 of the IT Act after hearing the representative of the appellant and verifying the books of account and other details called for by the Department.
While completing the assessment, the claim of the appellant for deduction u/s. 80P was disallowed on the ground that the claim for deduction had not been made in a valid return filed by the appellant in terms of the IT Act. It was the stand of AO that in view of the provisions of Section 80A(5) of the IT Act, the claim for deduction could not be considered.
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