2026 (4) TMI 1406

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....ent No. 3, Commissioner of Income - tax (Exemptions), Mumbai, under Section 119(2) (b) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (for short "the IT Act"), rejecting the Petitioner's application for condonation of delay of 430 days in filing Form No. 10 for Assessment Year 2015-16. 3. The Petitioner is a public charitable trust registered under Section 12A of the IT Act since 1976. The Petitioner has been regularly complying with various obligations for seeking exemption under Section 11 of the IT Act including regularly filing its Return of Income, Audit Reports, Form No. 10, wherever applicable. 4. For Assessment Year 2015 - 16, the Petitioner filed its Return of Income on 16.10.2016. In its Return of Income, the Petitioner declared Nil income aft....

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.... 07.03.2025, Respondent No. 3 rejected the Petitioner's application under Section 119(2)(b) of the IT Act, and hence, the present Petition. 7. We have heard the learned counsel for the parties. We have also perused the material placed on record. 8. For claiming the benefit of accumulation as per Section 11(2) of the IT Act, the Petitioner was required to file Form No. 10 (Statement of Accumulation). From the record, we are satisfied that there is a reasonable cause for the delay in filing Form No. 10 by the Petitioner. One of the relevant considerations for condoning delay under Section 119(2)(b) is to consider the genuine hardship which an Assessee will face if the delay is not condoned. 9. We derive support from the judgment of t....

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.... these cases also, this Court was concerned with condonation of delay in filing of similar forms within the stipulated time while claiming exemption under Section 11 of the IT Act. Therein, reliance was also placed on a judgment of the Gujarat High Court in the case of Sarvodaya Charitable Trust v. ITO (E) (2021) 125 taxmann.com 75 laying down the principle that in cases like the present one, the approach of the authority ought to be equitious, balancing and judicious and availing of exemption should not be denied merely on the bar of limitation. This is more so when the Legislature has, under Section 119(2)(b) of the IT Act, conferred discretionary powers to condone the delay on the authorities concerned with a view to avoid genuine hardsh....