Late Form No. 10B filing does not by itself deny exemption under sections 11 and 12 where substantive entitlement exists.

Late filing of Form No. 10B is a procedural lapse and, by itself, does not justify denial of exemption under sections 11 and 12 where the assessee holds valid registration under section 12A and substantive entitlement otherwise exists. The audit report filed during appellate proceedings was treated as sufficient to support the exemption claim, and the benefit was liable to be allowed.

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Issues: Whether the benefit of exemption under sections 11 and 12 could be denied solely because Form No. 10B was furnished belatedly during the appellate proceedings.

Analysis: The assessee held valid registration under section 12A and filed Form No. 10B at a later stage. The delay in furnishing the audit report was treated as a procedural lapse. Reliance was placed on judicial precedent holding that late filing of Form No. 10B does not, by itself, justify denial of exemption where the substantive entitlement otherwise exists.

Conclusion: The delay in filing Form No. 10B did not disentitle the assessee from the benefit of sections 11 and 12, and the exemption claim was liable to be allowed.

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