AI OCR 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (12) TMI 1523
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....to 10.01.2024 [being date of payment of refund]; (B) Issue an appropriate writ or order in the nature of Mandamus or otherwise, directing the Respondents to grant further interest on such interest as prayed in (A) above, from 10.01.2024 [being date of payment of refund without interest] upto the date of actual payment of interest; (C) Grant such other relief's as this honourable High Court may think fit including the costs of this writ petition." 2. Facts in brief, germane, are as follows: 2.1. The petitioner is a Company incorporated under the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 and is engaged in the business of manufacturing, trading and supply of sugar and its allied products. It transpires that the Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax, Circle-2(1), Belagavi, passes an order of assessment under Section 143(3) read with Section 147 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act' for short) for the assessment year 2008-2009, determining the tax payable at Rs.4,36,47,080/- as obtaining on 24-03-2016. The petitioner, aggrieved by the said determination, files an appeal before the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) on 27-04-2016. The peti....
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....n 12-06-2023. The petitioner then communicates to the department seeking the said refund, as it had not yet been into the account of the petitioner. The refund is then determined and stood credited to the bank account of the petitioner on 10-01-2024. The petitioner is now before the Court seeking interest to the amount of refund on 10-01-2024 which gave effect to the order in Form No.5 dated 24-02-2021 and beyond the due date by which the amount had to be paid - 31-07-2021. The petitioner sought interest for the said delayed payment of over 3 years, which the petitioner projected that it was a loss caused to them. No interest on refund is granted. Therefore the petitioner is before this Court seeking the aforesaid prayer. 3. Heard Sri Chythanya K.K., learned senior counsel appearing for petitioner and Sri M Thirumalesh, learned counsel appearing for the respondents. 4. The learned Senior Counsel Sri Chythanya K.K. appearing for the petitioner would vehemently contend that the refund amount ought to have been credited to the account of the petitioner way back in the year 2021, it is credited only in the year 2024. Therefore, there is delay. Interest is paid on delay, but the i....
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....secution under the Income Tax Act, 1961 in respect of tax arrears and waiver of interest. The same is given effect as under: 1 Book profit determined as per order u/s. 143(3) r.w.s 147 dated 24.03.2016 Rs. 121,89,26.600/- 2 Tax @ 10% : Rs. 12,18,92,600 Surcharge @, 10% of tax : Rs. 1,21,89,266 Cess @ 3% : Rs. 40,22,458 MAT Rs. 13.81,04,394/- 3 Undisputed Interest (as per order U/s.143(3) dated 30.09.2010) 234A: 0 234B: 9.92,255 234C: 15,67,013 Rs. 25.59,268/- 4 Total Payable Rs. 14,06.63.652/- 5 Less: TDS/TCS ADVANCE TAX SAT REGULAR TAX Total Taxes paid Rs. 43.99,789/- Rs.9,06,40,000/- Rs. 2.16,70.783/- Rs. 4,70.45,363/ Rs. 16,67,55.935/- 6 Tax Refundable Rs. 2,60,92,283/- Sd/- (SINGHVI RONAK KUNDANMAL, IRS) Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Circle-1, Belagavi." The intimation is sent to the petitioner in terms of Section 245 of the Act. The said intimation reads as follows: "Dear Sir/Madam, Subject: Intimation under section 245 of Income Tax Act, 1961 Please refer to the proceedings under section 5(2) passed by CIRCLE 1, BELGAUM which has res....
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....ot to adjust the refund of AY 2008-09 of Rs. 2,60,92,283/- against the demand of AY 2018-19 of Rs. 227,08,34,288/-, for which the Hon'ble High Court of Karnataka, Dharwad Bench, has already granted a stay of demand, and also request you to issue the refund at the earliest." What could be gathered from the aforesaid communications is, that under the Act, 2020 refund of Rs.2,60,92,283/- was determined under order in Form No.5 on 24-02-2021. On such determination, it was credited to the account of the petitioner, not on 24-02-2021, but on 10-01-2024. Therefore, there is clear delay of 35 months in crediting the amount of refund so determined by the respondents as on 24-02-2021. 8. The issue is, whether the petitioner would become entitled to interest on the said refund from 24-02-2021, till it reached the doors of the petitioner on 10-01-2024? 9. The determination of amount is admittedly Rs.2,60,92,283/-. This forms the corpus of refund. It is delayed by 35 months. Therefore, the interest on refund ought to have been granted to the petitioner. Whether the amount of interest that stood determined or that is grantable to the petitioner from 24-02-2021 to 10-01-2024 forms th....
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....o the assessee" in Section 244-A? 5. In the present case, as stated above, there are two components of the tax paid by the assessee for which the assessee was granted refund, namely, TDS of Rs 45,73,528 and tax paid after original assessment of Rs 1,71,00,320. The Department contends that the words "any amount" will not include the interest which accrued to the respondent for not refunding Rs 45,73,528 for 57 months. We see no merit in this argument. The interest component will partake of the character of the "amount due" under Section 244-A. It becomes an integral part of Rs 45,73,528 which is not paid for 57 months after the said amount became due and payable. As can be seen from the facts narrated above, this is the case of short payment by the Department and it is in this way that the assessee claims interest under Section 244-A of the Income Tax Act. Therefore, on both the aforestated grounds, we are of the view that the assessee was entitled to interest for 57 months on Rs 45,73,528. The principal amount of Rs 45,73,528 has been paid on 31-12-1997 but not of interest which, as stated above, partook the character of "amount due" under Section 244-A. 6. For th....
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....as under: "7. Any amount paid in pursuance of a declaration made under s. 4 shall not be refundable under any circumstances. Explanation.-For the removal of doubts, it is hereby clarified that where the declarant had, before filing the declaration under sub-s. (1) of s. 4, paid any amount under the IT Act in respect of his tax arrear which exceeds the amount payable under s. 3, he shall be entitled to a refund of such excess amount, but shall not be entitled to interest on such excess amount under s. 244A of the IT Act." 15. A bare perusal of the Explanation would reveal that the Explanation pertains to payment of any amount under the IT Act for the period before filing the declaration under sub-s. (1) of s. 4 of the VSV Act, 2020 and nothing to do with the entitlement to interest for the period after issuance of Form No. 5 indicating entitlement of the petitioner to the amount of refund. 16. In view of the above discussion, for the delayed payment, the petitioner is entitled to interest on the refund amount for the delay beyond the period of 90 days from the date of refund i.e. 8th March, 2021. 17. Consequently, the writ petition is all....