Case Law Details
District Government Pleaders Public Prosecutor Vs ACIT (ITAT Ahmedabad)
ITAT observe that in the instant facts, certain legal professionals have been appointed as public prosecutors to argue/plead cases on behalf of the Government of Gujarat. We have been further informed in this case that the professional remuneration is directly credited by the Government of Gujarat to the bank account of the aforesaid public prosecutors. The counsel for the assessee submitted before us that it is not in receipt of any advance from the Government of Gujarat, which it then disburses to the public prosecutors. Accordingly, we observe that in the instant case, the remuneration is paid directly by the Government of Gujarat and further the Gujarat Government is also responsible for deduction of tax at source and credit of same to the Central Government, in respect of remuneration/professional fee paid to public prosecutors. Therefore, given the above background, it is not clear to us on what is the role of assessee company in filing of TDS returns, especially when the remuneration is being paid to public prosecutors directly by the Gujarat Government after deducting taxes at source. Section 200 of the Act casts a duty on person deducting tax to pay the same within prescribed time to the credit of the Central Government. Section 200A of the Act draws out the procedure for processing of statements of tax deducted at source.
From the language of section 200A of the Act, it is clear that responsibility of preparing statement of TDS is on the person who has deducted any sum u/s. 200 of the Act. However, in the instant facts, it is unclear to us as to how the assessee is under an obligation to file TDS return in respect of taxes deducted at source by the Government of Gujarat, specially when the remuneration to the public prosecutors have been given directly by the Gujarat State in their bank accounts. It is also observed that the ld. CIT(A) while upholding the levy of fee u/s. 200A of the Act did not enquire into the aspect whether the assessee was under a legal obligation to file TDS return in respect of TDS so deducted (and subsequently deposited by the Government of Gujarat to the Central Government) and paid directly to the bank account of public prosecutors. In view of the above discussion, we are hereby restoring the file back to the ld. CIT(A) to analyze under what capacity the assessee is filing TDS returns and whether the assessee in the first instance, is under an obligation, to file statement of tax deducted at source u/s. 200A of the Act. In the result, the matter is being restored to the file of ld. CIT(A) with above the directions.
FULL TEXT OF THE ORDER OF ITAT AHMEDABAD
These three appeals have been filed by the assessee against the order of ld. CIT(A)-8 for assessment years 2014-15, 2015-16 and 2016-17 vide order dated 28-05-2019 for all the assessment years under consideration.
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