Manoj Kumar Ekambaram Arcot Vs ACIT (ITAT Bangalore)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) Bangalore reviewed an appeal by Manoj Kumar Ekambaram Arcot regarding the denial of exemption under Section 54 of the Income Tax Act for the assessment year 2015-16. The case was initially scrutinized due to large deductions claimed under multiple sections, but the assessee failed to respond to notices, leading to an addition of ₹72,14,370. Despite later submitting a sale agreement, the lack of supporting documents led to the rejection of the exemption claim. The CIT(A) upheld the assessment order in an ex-parte decision due to the assessee’s continued non-compliance, following a delayed appeal of 164 days. The assessee argued that notices were sent to his Chartered Accountant, who failed to act, leading to further delays in appealing.
Upon review, ITAT acknowledged a 256-day delay in filing the appeal but condoned it, citing no direct fault of the assessee. During proceedings, the assessee provided a paper book containing sale and purchase deeds along with income computations. Given that the CIT(A)’s order was ex-parte, ITAT decided not to examine the merits but set aside the order, allowing the assessee a fresh opportunity to present evidence. The case was remanded to CIT(A) for a new hearing with instructions to reassess after considering the submitted documents. The appeal was allowed for statistical purposes.
