Association of Indian Panelboard Manufacturers Vs DCIT (Gujarat High Court)
The Gujarat High Court allowed a tax appeal filed by a charitable trust challenging the dismissal of its exemption claims under Sections 11(1) and 11(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, for Assessment Year 2018–19. The appeal arose from an order of the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal which had upheld denial of exemptions solely on the ground that the audit report in Form 10B was not filed along with the return of income.
The assessee, a trust registered under Section 12AA, filed its return of income on 31.12.2018 declaring nil income after claiming exemptions under Sections 11(1) and 11(2). It was undisputed that the audit report in Form 10B was not filed along with the return due to inadvertence. However, the audit report was subsequently filed electronically on 07.12.2019. On the same date, the intimation under Section 143(1) was issued denying the claimed exemptions on the ground that Form 10B had not been filed along with the return.
The assessee’s appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) was dismissed, and the Tribunal also dismissed the further appeal, holding that belated filing of Form 10B disentitled the assessee from claiming exemptions. Aggrieved, the assessee approached the High Court under Section 260A, raising substantial questions of law on whether exemptions could be denied when the audit report was available on record before processing of the return and whether the Tribunal had failed to follow binding jurisdictional precedents.
