https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790480 Penalty under section 271B for failure to obtain tax audit under section 44AB is not automatic where the assessee establishes reasonable cause under section 273B. Here, the assessee's initial year of operations, lack of professional guidance and infrastructure, bona fide belief that audit under the Co-operative Societies Act was sufficient, and later compliant conduct supported the explanation. The explanation was found genuine and not mala fide, and the nil-income assessment also weighed against penalty. The penalty was therefore held unsustainable and directed to be deleted. en-us Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 Sat, 25 Apr 2026 08:51:38 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790480 Penalty under section 271B for failure to obtain tax audit under section 44AB is not automatic where the assessee establishes reasonable cause under section 273B. Here, the assessee's initial year of operations, lack of professional guidance and infrastructure, bona fide belief that audit under the Co-operative Societies Act was sufficient, and later compliant conduct supported the explanation. The explanation was found genuine and not mala fide, and the nil-income assessment also weighed against penalty. The penalty was therefore held unsustainable and directed to be deleted. Case-Laws Income Tax Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=790480