TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2001 (11) TMI 22
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....The assessee is a trust which filed a return for that year unaccompanied by the audit report which it was required to furnish, as required by section 12A(b) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"). The Assessing Officer, without any ado, rejected the assessee's claim for the benefit of section 11 of the Act and assessed the entire income of the trust under section 164(1) of the Act at the maximum marginal rate. On appeal, the Commissioner allowed the appeal holding that non-furnishing of the audit report was a "defect" within the meaning of section 139(9) of the Act and in all fairness the Assessing Officer should have given an opportunity to the assessee to rectify the defect. He, however, proceeded to grant the....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....he Assessing Officer when he considers the return of income furnished by the assessee to be defective, to intimate the defect to the assessee and give him an opportunity to rectify that defect within a period of 15 days from the date Of such intimation or within such further period which, on an application made in this behalf, the Assessing Officer may, in his discretion, allow, and if the defect is not rectified within the time allowed by him, the return is to be treated as an invalid return and the provisions of the Act would apply as if the assessee had failed to file the return. The Explanation under the proviso to sub-section (9) sets out that for the purposes of that sub-section, a return of income shall be regarded as defective unles....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....on or the other, may not have filed a return which is complete in all respects and may have defects therein. The Assessing Officer before making assessments is empowered to provide an opportunity to such assessees to correct those defects. An assessment made by the Assessing Officer without granting such an opportunity to the assessee to rectify the defect can result in drastic consequences to the assessees. The provisions of the Act which confer a benefit on the assessee are required to be given full effect to, and in case of any doubt, the doubt be resolved in favour of the assessee rather than in favour of the Revenue. It is noticed by the Commissioner in the course of his order that the assessee had all along been under the impression....