2024 (9) TMI 358

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....ax Officer, Ward-2, Sangli [now onwards 'Ld. AO'] for the assessment years 2017-18 is under challenge by the present appeal instituted u/s 253(1)(a) of the Act by the assessee. 2. The case was called twice, none appeared at the bequest of the assessee. The reasons stated in adjournment request letter dt. 28/08/2024 though found sufficient but on primary briefing from the Revenue, having regards to facts and settled position of law, we deem it fit to proceed ex-parte u/r 24 of ITAT-Rules, 1963 and adjudicate the same on merits in the absence of the assessee. We therefore advanced accordingly. 3. Abridged facts as presented by the Revenue from the case records reveals us that; 3.1 The assessee is an individual whose case for the AY 2....

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.... outset noted that, it remained undisputed between the rival parties that Revenue called upon the assessee to furnish information/documents vide notices dt. 12/12/2021 & 27/12/2021 issued u/s 142(1) of the Act, and assessee failed to comply therewith. The former notices u/s 142(1) of the Act by which the information/documents from the appellant were sought were admittedly issued to him during the subsistence of COVID-19 pandemic. 6. The Revenue levied the penalty for such failure & confirmed the same in first appeal for assessee's further failure to prove beyond doubt the existence of reasonable cause behind such non-compliance with documentary evidences, which the appellant assessee failed. Such failure also continued in the present pro....

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....of India imposed a nationwide lockdown using its powers u/s 6(2)(i) of the Disaster Management Act [now onwards 'DMA']. A nationwide lockdown of 21 days was declared on March 25, 2020 and which was then extended until May 31, 2020. Thereafter almost for a period of two years i.e. upto March 2022 several restrictions were imposed upon the citizen by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare by actively directing and advising all the states in the county on COVID-19 to ensure the safety of the citizens and the state/UT governments in turn were issuing regulations and notifications related to measures to be taken for containing the spread of COVID-19. Taking suo-motu cognizance of difficulty faced by tax payers/litigants the Hon'ble Supreme Co....