ITO Vs Yousuf Abdul Sattar Pochi (ITAT Pune)
The Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) Pune, in the case of ITO Vs Yousuf Abdul Sattar Pochi for Assessment Year 2017-18, addressed an appeal filed by the Revenue against the order of the Commissioner of Income-Tax (Appeals), National Faceless Appeal Centre 1 (NFAC). The NFAC had deleted an addition of Rs. 12.82 lakh, which the Assessing Officer had made as unexplained investment under Section 69A of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
During the proceedings, the ITAT noted that the disputed tax amount in the Revenue’s appeal, as reported in Form 36, was Rs. 10,14,491/-, which is less than the monetary limit set by the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) for filing appeals before the ITAT. The Tribunal specifically referred to CBDT Circular No. 09 of 2024, dated September 17, 2024, which raised this monetary limit for Revenue appeals before the ITAT to Rs. 60 lakh. The circular advises that appeals should generally not be filed if the tax effect does not exceed this specified limit.
Considering the directive of the CBDT circular and the fact that the tax effect in the instant appeal was below the prescribed threshold of Rs. 60 lakh, the ITAT Pune concluded that the Revenue’s appeal was not maintainable. Accordingly, the Tribunal dismissed the appeal. The order clarified that the issues raised in the appeal were not adjudicated on their merits but were left open to be examined in any future appropriate proceedings. The Revenue was also granted liberty to file an application for recalling the order if the case fell under any of the exceptions mentioned in the CBDT circular.
