Jain Swetamber TeerapanthMahila Mandal Vs CIT (Exemption) (ITAT Jodhpur)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Jodhpur Bench, allowed the appeals of Jain Swetamber Teerapanth Mahila Mandal Vs CIT (Exemption), restoring the trust’s applications for registration and provisional registration under the Income Tax Act, 1961.
Factual Background
The assessee, a trust, had applied for both provisional and permanent registration with the Commissioner of Income-tax (Exemption), Jaipur. These applications were rejected due to the trust’s failure to comply with §12AB(1)(b)(i)(B) of the Act. The primary reason for the rejection was that the trust was not registered under the Rajasthan Public Trust Act, 1959 (RPT Act) at the time of its application.
The assessee-trust filed an appeal before the ITAT, explaining that after the rejection orders were passed on February 22, 2024, it had successfully obtained the required registration certificate under the RPT Act on August 1, 2024. A copy of this certificate was submitted to the Tribunal. The revenue’s counsel verified the document and did not raise any objections.
ITAT’s Decision
The ITAT first addressed the procedural issue of a 163-day delay in filing the appeals. The Tribunal accepted the assessee’s explanation and, finding sufficient cause, condoned the delay.
On the substantive issue, the ITAT noted that the sole reason for the rejection of the applications was the absence of the registration certificate under the state’s public trust law. Since the trust had now obtained and furnished this certificate, the Tribunal concluded that the initial ground for denial no longer existed.
