2024 (3) TMI 430

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....lty under section 271B of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (the Act) for assessment year (AY) 2017-18 vide order dated 16.07.2021. 2. The issue arising in appeal is the maintainability in law of the penalty u/s. 271B in the facts and circumstances of the case; the assessee filing the tax audit report (in Forms 3CA and 3CD) along with the audit report under the Kerala Act, as required u/s. 44AB of the Act, though with a delay of 62 days. These facts and the concomitant delay being admitted; in fact, borne out by the record, the only question that survives is if the assessee, in the facts and circumstances of it's case, qualifies for the saving of s. 273B, which provides for non-imposition of penalty, inter alia, u/s. 271B, where the assessee show....

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.... audit in time, or as required by it and, further, not responded to it's queries, if any, raised or sought from time to time. The same, though material, we are not inclined to restore the matter for such inquiry back to the AO, particularly considering the extent of the delay as well as the assessee's conduct subsequent to the receipt of the audit report from the office of the Jt. Registrar, establishing it's bona fides, which are of prime relevance in penalty proceedings. It is, after all, not in the assessee's control to obtain the audit report from the Jt. Registrar. In this context, it needs to be appreciated that as against obtaining a tax audit report, or indeed a statutory audit report, as under the Companies Act, which are to be fro....