TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2024 (8) TMI 758
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....Income Tax<br>THE HONOURABLE MR. JUSTICE GOPINATH P. FOR THE PETITIONER : BY ADVS. ABRAHAM JOSEPH MARKOS (SR), V.ABRAHAM MARKOS , ISAAC THOMAS , P.G.CHANDAPILLAI ABRAHAM , JOHN VITHAYATHIL , AIBEL MATHEW SIBY FOR THE PETITIONER : BY ADVS SRI. JOSE JOSEPH (SR.SC-IT DEPT), SRI. CYRIAC TOM (JR.SC - IT DEPT) JUDGMENT [ WP(C) Nos.17059, 10488, 10505, 10543, 15733, 15982, 15987, 15999 and 16042 of 2024 ] The issue arising for consideration in these cases is common and these writ petitions can therefore be conveniently disposed of by a common judgment. 2. The petitioners in these cases are entities registered under Section 12A of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the '1961 Act'). For the assessment year 2022-2023, the p....
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....ave taken such a strict view and ought to have condoned the delay in filing the audit report, especially taking into consideration the fact that the income tax returns were filed within the due date. 4. Sri. Jose Joseph, the learned Standing Counsel appearing for the Income Tax Department would submit that the reasons mentioned by the petitioners for the delay in filing the audit report are not at all acceptable in the facts and circumstances of these cases. It is submitted that the petitioners contend that they were unable to uphold the audit report on account of certain technical glitches, which cannot be correct, as the audit report itself was prepared much later than the date on which such glitches are reported. It is submitted that th....
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....ohammediyah Education Society (Supra) held as follows: "6. Admittedly, Petitioner is a charitable trust. Admittedly, Petitioner has been filing its returns and Form 10B for AY 2015-16, for AY 2017-18 to AY 2021- 22 within the due dates. On this ground alone, in our view, delay condonation application should have been allowed because the failure to file returns for AY 2016- 17 could be only due to human error. Even in the impugned order, there is no allegation of malafide. As held by the Gujarat High Court in Sarvodaya Charitable Trust v. Income Tax Officer (Exemption); (2021) 125 taxmann.com 75 (Gujarat), the approach in the cases of the present type should be equitious, balancing and judicious. Technically, strictly and liberally speakin....
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....ntext of the circumstance of any case. Beyond a plea of the sort the petitioner raises (concededly belatedly), there can not necessarily be independent proof or material to establish that the auditor in fact acted without diligence. The petitioner did not urge any other grounds such as illness of someone etc., which could reasonably have been substantiated by independent material. In the circumstances of the case, the petitioner, in our opinion, was able to show bona fide reasons why the refund claim could not be made in time. 9. The statute or period of limitation prescribed in provisions of law meant to attach finality, and in that sense are statutes of repose; however, wherever the legislature intends relief against hardship in cases ....
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....nds, would get thrown out of gear, if such powers are routinely exercised without considering its desirability and expedience to do so to avoid genuine hardship. 8. In a similar matter in Shree Jain Swetamber Murtipujak Tapagachha Sangh v. Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions) and Anr (Writ Petition (L) No.1321 od 2024 decided on 27.3.2024) was also a case where auditor had due to oversight not filed Form 10B. The Court held that the error on the part of auditor cannot be rejected but should be accepted as a reasonable cause shown by the trust management. In that case also, Petitioner did not suo moto realize its mistake and filed a condonation request only after Centralised Processing Centre ("CPC") sent an intimation about non- filin....