ACIT Vs Hi Tech Systems & Services Limited (ITAT Kolkata)
Conclusion: Filing of Form 10CCB required for claiming deductions under Section 80IA before the due date for filing of return of income u/s 139(1) was only directory and not mandatory for the year under consideration.
Held: Assessee-company was engaged in operating wind power plants and was eligible for deductions under Section 80IA. Assessee filed its income tax return within the extended deadline set by the CBDT for the assessment year (AY) 2022-23. The audit report in Form 10CCB was submitted four days after the statutory deadline. Centralized Processing Center (CPC) denied assessee’s deduction claim of Rs. 5,88,89,613 during the processing of its return, citing the late filing of Form 10CCB as a violation of Section 80IA(7). CPC held that timely submission of the form was mandatory. CIT(A) explained that the filing of Form 10CCB before the specified date was not mandatory but a directory. CIT(A) observed that the audit report was filed before the return was processed and that several rulings supported the allowance of such deductions despite procedural delays. Revenue challenged this decision before Tribunal arguing that CPC was correct in denying the deduction as the audit report was not filed within the prescribed timeframe. Assessee argued that the delay was minor and that the audit report was submitted well before the return processing date fulfilling substantial compliance. It was held that following the decision in the case of PCIT vs. Surya Merchands Ltd. 387 ITR 105 and the Hon’ble High Court of Uttrakhand in the case of CIT Vs. Sanjay Kumar Bansal 35 taxmann.com 514, and Honb’ble Karnataka High Court in the case of CIT vs. ACE Multi Taxes Systems Pvt. Ltd. 317 ITR 207 ,it was concluded that filing of audit report in Form 10CCB before the due date for filing of return of income u/s 139(1) was only directory and not mandatory for the year under consideration. Thus, AO was directed to allow deduction claimed u/s 80IA.
