Tribunal Upholds Rs. 5,000 Penalty for Late Income Tax Return Filing for Assessment Year 2015-16.

The Tribunal dismissed the assessee's appeal, affirming the penalty of Rs. 5,000 under Section 271F of the Income Tax Act, 1961. The penalty was upheld due to the assessee's failure to file the return of income by the due date for the Assessment Year 2015-16, despite filing in response to a notice under Section 148.

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Issues:
The judgment involves the confirmation of penalty imposed under Section 271F of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for the Assessment Year 2015-16, based on the failure of the assessee to file the return of income on time.

Details of the Judgment:

Issue 1: Levy of Penalty under Section 271F
The assessee's appeal contested the penalty imposed under Section 271F, amounting to Rs. 5,000, for not filing the original return on time. The argument was that penalty proceedings were initiated after the return was filed in response to a notice under Section 148, and thus, the penalty was unjustified.

The Assessing Officer initiated penalty proceedings under Section 271F after finalizing the assessment order under Section 147. While the assessee did file the return in response to a notice under Section 148, there was no explanation provided for not filing the original return by the due date of 31.03.2016. The Tribunal upheld the penalty, emphasizing that the failure to file the return on time made the assessee liable for the penalty under Section 271F.

Conclusion:
The Tribunal dismissed the appeal of the assessee, affirming the penalty imposed under Section 271F for the failure to file the return of income on time.

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