Appeal Dismissed Over Delay of 968 Days; Condonation Request Rejected

The ITAT Delhi dismissed the appeal due to a significant delay of 968 days in filing the appeal, rejecting the assessee's request for condonation. The tribunal found the reasons provided by the assessee insufficient to justify the delay and cited a specific case law where similar circumstances did not warrant condonation. The decision was made on January 19, 2023, in an open court session.

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Issues: Delay in filing appeal before ITAT Delhi

Analysis:
The judgment pertains to an appeal by the assessee against the order of ld. CIT (Appeals)-3, New Delhi dated 01.12.2015 for the Assessment Year 2006-07. The primary issue at hand is the significant delay of 968 days in filing the appeal before the ITAT Delhi. The reason provided for the delay was that the company's accountant received the order through email from the counsel of the assessee company but failed to disclose it. It was later discovered by another accountant in the company that the appeal had not been filed. The assessee sought condonation of the delay based on these grounds.

The Revenue, represented by the Ld. DR, strongly objected to condoning the delay. Upon careful consideration, the ITAT Delhi, comprising Shamim Yahya, Accountant Member, and Ms. Astha Chandra, Judicial Member, found the reasons presented by the assessee insufficient to warrant condonation of the substantial delay. The tribunal cited a specific case law, ITA No.6432/Del/2014, in which the circumstances were deemed inapplicable to the current case. Consequently, the ITAT Delhi dismissed the appeal as time-barred, emphasizing the lack of a reasonable cause to justify the delay of 968 days. The decision was pronounced on the 19th day of January, 2023, in an open court setting.

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