Mandatory filing of the prescribed audit form is essential for section 11 exemption; filing a different form does not suffice.

Exemption under section 11 was denied because filing the prescribed Form 10B was treated as a mandatory statutory condition under section 12A(1)(b), and filing Form 10BB did not satisfy that requirement. The applicable CBDT instructions for the relevant assessment year required Form 10B, not Form 10BB, and the assessee had not furnished the prescribed form before processing under section 143(1). The reliance on case law treating similar defaults as procedural was held inapplicable on these facts, as the specific form required for exemption was never filed. The disallowance of exemption was therefore sustained and the assessee's claim failed.

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Issues: Whether exemption under section 11 of the Income-tax Act, 1961 could be denied for failure to file Form 10B as required under section 12A(1)(b) when Form 10BB had been filed before processing under section 143(1).

Analysis: The amended circular for assessment year 2023-24 required filing of Form 10B and not Form 10BB. The assessee had filed only Form 10BB, while Form 10B remained unfiled. The filing requirement was treated as a statutory condition for availing exemption, and the case law relied upon for treating the default as merely procedural was found inapplicable on the facts because the prescribed form itself had not been furnished.

Conclusion: The denial of exemption was upheld and the assessee's claim failed.

Final Conclusion: The appeal was rejected, and the disallowance of exemption was sustained in favour of the Revenue.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the statute and the applicable CBDT instructions prescribe a specific form as a condition for exemption, filing a different form does not satisfy the mandatory requirement.

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