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2018 (2) TMI 1696
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....A of the Income tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act') for certain quarters of financial year 2012-13, whereby late filing fee was charged under section 234E for delay in filing TDS statements. 2. The only ground raised in the captain appeal relates to late fee charged under section 234E for belated filing of TDS returns for some quarters in appeal. 3. When the matter was called for hearing, the Ld. Authorised Representative for the assessee submitted with reference to ITA No. 1375/Ahd/2015 that the Revenue has imposed late filing fees under section 234E of the Act amounting to Rs. 25,000/- for belated filing of quarter-2 return in prescribed form No. 26Q for financial year 2012-13 relevant assessment year 2013-14. It wa....
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....sionability of levy of fee under section 234E of the Act till section 200A of the Act was amended w.e.f. 01.06.2015. To support the aforesaid proposition, the decisions of the Co-ordinate bench of Tribunal was sought to be relied upon on behalf of the assessee. At this juncture, we notice that Hon'ble Gujarat High Court in the Case of Rajesh Kourani vs. Union of India 297 CTR 502 (Gujarat) has taken a view adverse to the proposition of assessee. The Hon'ble High Court observed that section 200A of the Income tax Act, 1961 is a machinery provision and cannot govern a charging provision. In terms of the aforesaid decision, the Revenue could always levy fee in terms of section 234E of the Act even prior the amendment in section 200A of the Act....
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.... and the statement is filed within one year of the due date. With addition to these two provisions prescribing fee and penalty respectively, clause (k) of subsection (2) of section 272A became redundant and by adding a proviso to the said section, this effect was therefore limited upto 01.07.2012. 17. In essence, section 234E thus prescribed for the first time charging of a fee for every day of default in filing of statement under sub-section (3) of section 200 or any proviso to sub-section (3) of section 206C. This provision was apparently added for making the compliance of deduction and collection of tax at source, depositing it with Government revenue and filing of the statements more stringent. 18. In this context, we ....
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....sm for processing a statement for tax deduction and the method in which the same would be done. When section 234E has already created a charge for levying fee that would thereafter not been necessary to have yet another provision creating the same charge. Viewing section 200A as creating a new charge would bring about a dichotomy. In plain terms, the provision in our understanding is a machinery provision and at best provides for a mechanism for processing and computing besides other, fee payable under section 234E for late filing of the statements. 20. Even in absence of section 200A of the Act with introduction of section 234E, it was always open for the Revenue to demand and collect the fee for late filing of the statements. Sec....
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...., but was conferring substantive power on the authority. The Court was also of the opinion that section 234E of the Act was in the nature of privilege to the defaulter if he fails to pay fees then he would be rid of rigor of the penal provision of section 271H of the Act. With both these propositions, with respect, we are unable to concur. Section 200A is not a source of substantive power. Substantive power to levy fee can be traced to section 234E of the Act. Further the fee under section 234E of the Act is not in lieu of the penalty of section 271H of the Act. Both are independent levies. Section 271H only provides that such penalty would not be levy if certain conditions are fulfilled. One of the conditions is that the tax with fee and i....