Appeal Dismissed: Penalty Deletion Upheld for Assessment Year 2009-2010

The Court dismissed the appeal challenging the deletion of penalty imposed on the Assessee under Section 271(1)(c) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the Assessment Year 2009-2010. The Court found the penalty order to be beyond the limitation period under Section 275(1)(a) of the Act, applying the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case. It held that the limitation period for penalty proceedings starts from the date the ITAT's order is served upon the CIT (Judicial), aligning with the interpretation in the Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case.

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Issues:
1. Penalty imposed on the Assessee under Section 271(1)(c) of the Income Tax Act, 1961.
2. Interpretation of limitation period under Section 275(1)(a) of the Act for penalty proceedings.
3. Application of the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case to penalty proceedings under Section 158 (BFA) (3) (c) of the Act.
4. Distinction between the context of the Revenue filing an appeal under Section 260A of the Act and penalty proceedings under Section 271(1)(c).

Analysis:
1. The appeal was against the order of the ITAT deleting the penalty imposed on the Assessee under Section 271(1)(c) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, for the Assessment Year 2009-2010, based on the expiry of the limitation period under Section 275(1)(a) of the Act.

2. The Court considered the timeline of events, noting that the limitation period for penalty proceedings began running from the date the ITAT's order was served upon the CIT (Judicial), as per the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case. The penalty order in this case was found to be beyond the limitation period.

3. The Court applied the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case to the computation of the limitation for initiation of penalty proceedings under Section 158 (BFA) (3) (c) of the Act. It held that the limitation period for penalty proceedings would begin from the date the ITAT's order was served upon the CIT (Judicial), aligning with the interpretation in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case.

4. The Court addressed the distinction raised by the Revenue regarding the context of the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case being specific to appeals under Section 260A of the Act. However, it found that the wording in Section 275(1)(a) was similar to Section 158 (BFA) (3) (c) and Section 260A, leading to the conclusion that the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case was applicable to penalty proceedings as well.

5. Ultimately, the Court dismissed the appeal, stating that no substantial question of law arose, and upheld the ITAT's decision based on the application of the decision in Odeon Builders Pvt. Ltd. case to the penalty proceedings in the present case.

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