Chirag P. Thummar Vs PCIT (ITAT Surat)
Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Surat Bench, has remanded an appeal filed by assessee Chirag P. Thummar back to the Principal Commissioner of Income Tax (PCIT), Valsad. The appeal challenged an order passed under Section 263 of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The ITAT’s decision, pronounced on January 22, 2024, centered on two key aspects: the condonation of a significant delay in filing the appeal and the ex-parte nature of the PCIT’s original order.
The assessee’s appeal to the ITAT was filed with a delay of 1740 days. After excluding the period covered by the Supreme Court’s directives related to the COVID-19 pandemic (from March 15, 2020, to February 28, 2022), the effective delay was calculated to be 1100 days. Thummar sought condonation, submitting an affidavit explaining that his previous income tax practitioner (ITP), Shri Sanjay Gandhi, had mistakenly advised him that the PCIT’s order under Section 263 was not appealable. Consequently, an appeal was not filed at the appropriate time. The affidavit also noted that an appeal fee was paid and a significant amount (Rs. 2 lakh, more than 20% of the demand) was deposited in anticipation of an appeal against the subsequent assessment order passed as an appeal effect of the Section 263 order, demonstrating the assessee’s intention to litigate the matter.
