Akshay Nitin Malu Vs ITO (ITAT Pune)
In the case of Akshay Nitin Malu Vs ITO, the Pune ITAT addressed a dispute regarding the taxation regime for assessment year 2022-23. The assessee, a cloth manufacturer, initially opted for the new tax regime under section 115BAC and filed Form 10-IE. However, after realizing that the old regime would be more beneficial, the assessee filed the return of income under the old regime. Despite this, the Centralized Processing Center (CPC) processed the return under the new regime, citing the earlier submission of Form 10-IE. The assessee contested this, arguing that the conditions for opting into the new regime were not fully met and the CPC should have honored the filed return under the old regime.
The Addl. JCIT(A) upheld the CPC’s action, stating that under section 115BAC, once the option for the new regime is exercised, it cannot be withdrawn for the current year, only for subsequent years. However, the ITAT disagreed with this interpretation, ruling that the return filed under the old regime should be accepted. The tribunal noted that although the assessee had filed Form 10-IE for the new regime, the return itself was submitted under the old regime, and since the new regime’s conditions were not fully satisfied, the CPC should not have enforced the new tax regime. Consequently, the ITAT set aside the order of the Addl. JCIT(A) and allowed the appeal, affirming the validity of the return under the old tax regime.
