Penalty under section 271D for alleged contravention of section...

Penalty under section 271D for alleged contravention of section 269SS was found unsustainable where the assessment proceedings did not record any finding of such violation. The Tribunal noted that the assessee had furnished complete details of the cash deposits during assessment, and that penalty could not rest on a later second opinion. It also referred to the view in Sahara India Financial Corporation Ltd. that cash deposits by a non-banking financial company dealing with depositors in rural areas without adequate banking facilities did not attract penalty in the stated circumstances. On that basis, the penalty was deleted.

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