Section 80P deduction denied where return was filed only after notice and not within the section 139(1) due date.

The amended section 80AC, effective from 1 April 2018 and applicable from assessment year 2018-19, extends the due-date filing condition to deductions under Chapter VI-A, including section 80P. A return furnished only in response to notice under section 148 does not satisfy the requirement of filing the return within section 139(1) for claiming the deduction. The Tribunal further held that the CBDT circular relied on for condonation did not empower the appellate authority to regularise delayed filing, and earlier precedents were displaced by the amended statutory position. Deduction under section 80P was therefore not allowable and the disallowance was sustained.

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Issues: Whether deduction under section 80P of the Income-tax Act, 1961 could be denied where the return of income was not filed within the due date prescribed under section 139(1), and where the return was furnished only in response to notice under section 148.

Analysis: The Tribunal noted that the amendment to section 80AC, effective from 01.04.2018 and applicable from assessment year 2018-19, extends the due-date condition to deductions falling under Chapter VI-A, Part C, including section 80P. It accepted the departmental position that a return filed only in response to notice under section 148 does not satisfy the statutory requirement of filing the return within section 139(1) for availing the deduction. The Tribunal also held that the CBDT circular relied upon for condonation of delay did not confer power on the appellate authority to regularise the delayed filing, and that the reliance on earlier precedents was displaced by the amended statutory position.

Conclusion: Deduction under section 80P was not allowable in the absence of a return filed within the time prescribed under section 139(1), and the disallowance was sustained in favour of Revenue.

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