TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2022 (3) TMI 764
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.... 2013-13. The assessee has raised the following grounds of appeal, which are as under:- 1. On the facts and circumstances of the case and in law the learned commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) erred in confirming penalty levied by the Assessing officer of Rs. 1,50,000/- u/s. 271B of the Income Tax 1961. 2. The learned CIT(A) erred in confirming penalty levied by A.O. U/s. 271B of the IT Act 1961 without considering provisions of Sec. 273B of the Income Tax Act 1961. 3. The learned CIT(A) considering the facts and circumstances of the case ought to have held that the Appellant had a reasonable cause for delay in obtaining Tax Audit Report u/s. of the Income Tax Act 1961 and further held that penalty u/s. 271B of R....
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....tention of the AO was that as per section 44AB of the IT Act, the assessee ought to have got its account audited for the AY 2013-14 by an auditor before the specified date and subsequently should have furnished such report in the prescribed form duly signed and verified with such particulars on or before 30.09.2013 for AY 2013-14. But the tax audit report in Form 3CD was filed with much delay only on 17.09.2014 and the assessee has thus failed to comply with the provision of section 44AB of the Act. Accordingly, penalty proceedings u/s. 271B of the Act was initiated by the AO at the time of passing the assessment order on 04.03.16 by issuing show cause notice u/s. 274 r.w.s. 271B of the Act on 04.03.16 for its failure to comply with the pro....
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....port followed by the report of Comptroller & Auditor General of India (CAG) which was completed on 23.01.14 and March 2014 respectively. Thereafter compiling of the said in Form 3CD was carried on after completion of both the audits and the report dated 17.09.14 u/s. 44AB was obtained from Tax Auditors. These facts were elucidated during the proceedings before the AO and Ld. CIT(A). The provision of section 273B may be highlighted hereunder which states that "no penalty shall be imposable on the person or the assessee, as the case may be, for any failure referred to in the said provisions, if he proves that there was reasonable cause for the said failure." 7. The fate of the appeal depends upon the answer to the question whether....
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....it after the expiry of the specified date may not automatically erase or obliterate the default committed earlier. However, the subsequent conduct of the assessee in obtaining the report of audit with least practicable delay certainly lends support to his plea that his failure to obtain the audit report before the specified date was for a reasonable cause and was not due to any intentional or deliberate act on his part. Thus, the subsequent act of the assessee in obtaining the audit report becomes relevant for judging the reasonableness or otherwise of the cause shown by the assessee for not complying with the requirements of section 44AB before the specified date. 8. Similar view has been taken by Hon'ble Calcutta High Court in the ....