Audit report filing after return cannot by itself deny section 80IB deduction when filed within permissible time.

Deduction under section 80IB could not be denied merely because the audit report was not filed with the return of income. The Court applied earlier authority holding that the report may be furnished after the return, so long as the statutory requirement is satisfied within the permissible time. As the assessee produced the audit report within that time, refusal of the deduction was unjustified and the issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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Issues: Whether deduction under section 80IB of the Income-tax Act, 1961 could be denied merely because the audit report was not furnished along with the return of income.

Analysis: The Court noted that the issue stood covered by earlier authority holding that the audit report may be produced even after the return is filed, and that the statutory requirement is not wholly dispensed with. Since the assessee had produced the requisite report within the permissible time, the denial of deduction was not justified.

Conclusion: Deduction under section 80IB could not be refused solely for non-furnishing of the audit report with the return. The issue was decided in favour of the assessee.

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