Tribunal overturns CIT(A) decision, cancels fees under Section 234E, Income Tax Act, 1961

The Tribunal allowed all appeals, overturning the CIT(A)'s decision to uphold the levy of fees under Section 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Relying on precedent and interpreting the statute, the Tribunal concluded that no late fee could be imposed for TDS statements filed up to 31.03.2015. Citing conflicting decisions, the Tribunal favored the assessee and canceled the fee, following the principle of upholding decisions in favor of the assessee in such instances.

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Issues:
Levy of fee u/s 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961.

Analysis:

Issue 1: Levy of Late Fees under Section 234E
The appeals were against the order of the ld. CIT(A) upholding the levy of fee u/s 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The common issue in all appeals was the imposition of late fees u/s 234E by the Assessing Officer. The enabling clause (c) was inserted in section 200A w.e.f. 01.06.2015, which was confirmed by the Ld. CIT(A) based on the decision of the Hon’ble Gujarat High Court in the case of 'Rajesh Kaurani vs. Union of India'. The Tribunal considered whether the late filing fee u/s 234E of the Act was rightly charged in the intimation issued u/s 200A/206CB of the Act while processing the TDS returns/statements. It was noted that earlier, there was no enabling provision in the Act u/s 200A for raising demand regarding the levy of fee u/s 234E. The Tribunal reviewed the facts and held that for TDS statements filed up to 31.03.2015, no late fee could be levied in the intimation issued u/s 200A of the Act.

Issue 2: Precedent and Interpretation of Statute
The Tribunal referred to a similar case adjudicated by the Co-ordinated bench ITAT Agra in the case of 'Sudershan Goyal vs. DCIT (TDS)', where the issue was decided against the assessee. The Tribunal analyzed the decisions in 'Rajesh Kaurani vs. UOI' and 'Shri Fatehraj Singhvi and Others vs. UOI'. It was observed that there was a cleavage of opinion between different High Courts on the issue. The Tribunal followed the principle that in case of conflicting decisions, the one in favor of the assessee should be upheld. Relying on 'Shri Fatehraj Singhvi and Others', the Tribunal accepted the assessee's grievance as justified, reversed the order under appeal, and canceled the levy of the fee under section 234E of the Act.

Conclusion
In conclusion, the Tribunal allowed all the appeals, accepting the grievance of the assessees as genuine. The orders of the CIT(A) were reversed, and the fee levied under section 234E of the Act was canceled. The Tribunal pronounced the order in the open court on 22/03/2022.

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