Dadasaheb Vittalrao Urhe Vs ITO (ITAT Pune)
In a significant ruling affecting numerous assessees, the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Pune Bench, has clarified the applicability of late fees under Section 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The Tribunal, in a batch of 24 appeals filed by Dadasaheb Vittalrao Urhe, an individual proprietor, held that such fees cannot be levied for delays in furnishing TDS statements for periods prior to June 1, 2015, due to the absence of an enabling provision in the Act.
The appeals challenged orders from the National Faceless Appeal Centre (NFAC), Delhi, which had upheld the levy of late filing fees by the CIT/CPC-TDS, Pune, for various quarters pertaining to assessment years (AY) 2013-14 to 2015-16.
Condonation of Delay: At the outset, the ITAT condoned the delay in filing the appeals, citing judicial precedents such as Vijay Vishin Meghani Vs. DCIT & Anr (398 ITR 250 (Bom)) and Collector, Land Acquisition, Anantnag and Anr. Vs Ms Katiji and Others (167 ITR 5 (SC)). The Tribunal emphasized a liberal approach to condoning delays, stating that “none should be deprived of an adjudication on merits unless it is found that the litigant deliberately delayed the filing of appeal.”
