Nazneen Parvez Memon Vs ITO (ITAT Pune)
Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) Pune has remanded the case of Nazneen Parvez Memon back to the Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (JAO), acknowledging the possibility of a mistake made by a tax preparer that led to a significant increase in the declared income. The appeal concerned an intimation issued under section 143(1) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, for the Assessment Year 2022-23.
The central issue arose from two different income tax returns filed for the same assessment year. The assessee, Nazneen Parvez Memon, had initially filed a return declaring an income of ₹5,15,000, which was processed and accepted. However, a second, updated return was subsequently filed under the assessee’s PAN, showing a much higher income of ₹26,11,330. The assessee’s legal counsel argued before the ITAT that this updated return was filed without the client’s knowledge or consent. According to the submission, the error occurred because the assessee’s tax preparer mistakenly used a one-time password intended for another client, resulting in the wrong income details being uploaded to the portal. The assessee maintained that the actual income was the original amount of ₹5,15,000.
In its decision, the ITAT took a compassionate view, recognizing that such errors can frequently happen when taxpayers rely on third-party professionals to handle their returns. The Tribunal cited the principle of natural justice, which holds that a taxpayer should be taxed only on the income actually earned. While the order did not reference a specific judicial precedent by name, it was guided by this fundamental principle consistently upheld by various courts.
