Hunnur Souhard Credit Sahakari Sangh Niyamit Hunnur Vs ITO (ITAT Bangalore)
The assessee, a co-operative society, filed appeals against the orders of the National Faceless Appeal Centre (NFAC) for Assessment Years 2015-16 and 2016-17. The Assessing Officer (AO) reopened the assessments under Section 147 on the ground that substantial cash deposits had been made into the assessee’s bank account and no return of income had been filed. Notices under Sections 148 and 142(1), followed by a show-cause notice under Section 144, were issued. As the assessee did not respond, the AO treated the cash deposits as unexplained money under Section 69A for both years.
The assessee filed appeals before the CIT(A) with delays of 142 and 139 days. It explained that it had originally held a PAN in the status of a firm and later obtained a new PAN in the status of an AOP. Returns were filed under the new PAN, and therefore the assessee was unaware of the notices and assessment orders issued under the old PAN. The CIT(A) dismissed the appeals as time-barred, holding that sufficient cause for the delay had not been established.
Before the Tribunal, the assessee submitted that the cash deposits had been properly recorded in its books and reported in returns filed under the new PAN. The Tribunal observed that, after obtaining a new PAN and filing returns under it, the assessee would not normally monitor the old PAN. Therefore, the explanation for the delay could not be dismissed as insufficient.
