Naba Utkal Trust Vs ITO (ITAT Cuttack)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Cuttack bench, has condoned a one-day delay in the filing of Form 10B by the Naba Utkal Trust and directed the tax authorities to allow its claim for deductions. The case highlights a procedural conflict between the assessee’s compliance and the rigid application of tax rules by the Assessing Officer and the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals).
The Naba Utkal Trust, a charitable organization running an ITI College, filed its income tax return for the assessment year 2021-22. The return declared a gross total income of ₹39,18,463, with ₹35,04,508 applied for charitable purposes and ₹4,13,955 accumulated under Section 11(2) of the Income-tax Act. The trust’s audit report in Form 10B, which is mandatory for claiming such deductions, was due on March 15, 2021, but was filed on March 16, 2021, a delay of just one day.
The Assessing Officer (AO) at the Central Processing Centre (CPC), Bengaluru, disallowed the entire claim for charitable deductions and taxed the trust’s full income, raising a demand of ₹12,69,400. This decision was based on the late filing of the audit report. The trust appealed to the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals), who dismissed the appeal, stating that they lacked the power to condone the delay in filing Form 10B.
