TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2019 (1) TMI 746
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....ition of Rs. 3,84,312/- as unexplained income and on an appeal before CIT(A), the CIT(A) dismissed the appeal and the said order was received by the assessee on 10/09/2014. It was submitted that the assessee being old and uneducated person did not know the technicalities of income tax proceedings and on an advice of his counsel he filed application u/s 154 before Income Tax Officer and Income Tax Officer, Faizabad dismissed the application by passing a detailed order dated 27/03/2015. It was submitted that again on the advice of the counsel the assessee filed appeal before learned CIT(A) which was pending before him. It was further submitted that the Assessing Officer was pressing hard for deposit of demand and on an advice given by the present counsel the assessee was advised to file appeal before the Tribunal and that is why the delay in filing the appeals had occurred. Learned A. R. invited our attention to an order of Cochin Bench of the Tribunal where Hon'ble Tribunal vide order dated 25/06/2018 had held that where the delay in filing the appeal had occurred due to wrong advice by the counsel, the delay should be condoned. Inviting our attention to the facts of the case, L....
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.... accrual basis of similar amount should have been allowed by the authorities below as the assessee had no element of profit in these coupons. 3. Learned D. R., on the other hand, supported the orders of authorities below. 4. We have heard the rival parties and have gone through the material placed on record. I first deal with the issue of condonation of delay. I find that assessee was prevented for filing the appeal within prescribed period of time because of the wrong advise of the counsel whereby the order of 4 learned CIT(A) was not challenged before the Tribunal but it was challenged by filing application u/s 154 of the Act. The Assessing Officer has passed order u/s 154 on 27/03/2015 and against the order of Assessing Officer assessee again filed appeal before learned CIT(A) again on the wrong advice. Therefore, there was sufficient reason for delay in filing the appeals. Hon'ble Tribunal in the case of Midas Ploymer Compounds Pvt. Ltd. vs. ACIT has dealt the issue in a case where the delay occurred due to wrong advice of a counsel and has decided the issue in favour of the assessee by holding as under: "6. We have heard the rival submissions and perused the....
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....ot every hour's delay, every second's delay? The doctrine must be applied in a rational, commonsense and pragmatic manner. (4) When substantial justice and technical consideration are pitted against each other, the cause of substantial justice deserves to be preferred, for the other side cannot claim to have vested right in injustice being done because of a nondeliberate delay. (5) There is no presumption that delay is occasioned deliberately, or on account of culpable negligence, or on account of mala fides. A litigant does not stand to benefit by resorting to delay. In fact, he runs a serious risk. (6) It must be grasped that the judiciary is respected not on account of its power to legalise injustice on technical grounds but because it is capable of removing injustice and is expected to do so. 6.2 When substantial justice and technical consideration are pitted against each other, the cause of substantial justice deserves to be preferred, for the other side cannot claim to have vested right for injustice being done because of nondeliberate delay. In the case on our hand, the issue on merit regarding allowability of deduction u/s. 80IB o....
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....present author in that case was overruled by the Third Member. 6.4 The Madras High Court in the case of Sreenivas Charitable Trust (supra) held that no hard and fast rule can be laid down in the matter of condonation of delay and the Court should adopt a pragmatic approach and the Court should exercise their discretion on the facts of each case keeping in mind that in construing the expression "sufficient cause" the principle of 7 advancing substantial justice is of prime importance and the expression "sufficient cause" should receive a liberal construction. Therefore, this Judgment of the Madras High Court (supra) clearly says that in order to advance substantial justice which is of prime importance, the expression "sufficient cause" should receive a liberal construction. In this case, the issue on merit regarding granting of deduction u/s. 80IB was covered in favour of the assessee by the Judgment of the jurisdictional High Court. Therefore, for the purpose of advancing substantial justice which is of prime importance in the administration of justice, the expression "sufficient cause" should receive a liberal construction. In our opinion, this Judgment of the jurisdictio....
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....nd disposed of on merit. 6.7 . In view of the above, we condone the delay of 2819 days in filing the appeal and admit the appeal for adjudication." I find that in the present cases also the delay had occurred because of the wrong advice of the counsel therefore, the delay in filing the appeal is condoned and the appeal was admitted for adjudication on merits. 4.1 I find that during the assessment proceedings the addition of Rs. 3,84,312/- was made by the Assessing Officer as the Assessing Officer had observed that such payment was reflected in Form-26 AS and assessee had claimed TDS of Rs. 21,559/-. The Assessing Officer had made this addition as he held that during assessment year 2007-08 the assessee had already claimed TDS but the corresponding receipt was not incorporated in the income. The learned CIT(A) also upheld the addition. The learned CIT(A) has held that the deductor Idea had duly deducted TDS and had issued credit notes in favour of the assessee. The learned CIT(A) however noted that the assessee had duly claimed the recharged coupons as expenses when these were distributed by him in the next year. The learned CIT(A), in his findings, has ignored the fa....