TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (9) TMI 983
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....gistration Certificate issued by the Charity Commissioner do not constitute documents evidencing the creation of the trust as prescribed under Rule 17A(2)(b) of Income tax Rules, 1962 by completely overlooking the fact that the appellant is a charitable trust duly registered with the Charity Commissioner under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 based on valid declaration of trust since the year 1956 and exists as a public charitable trust. 3) The learned CIT(E) failed to consider and appreciate the Certificate of Registration granted by the Charity Commissioner under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 which is a valid document that establishes the existence of the Appellant Trust and is covered by the provisions of Rule 17(A)(2)(b) any document evidencing the creation OR establishment of the trust 4) The learned CIT(E) erred in observing that the Canon Law does not have any direct application for management and administrations of charitable trusts 5) The learned CIT(E) erred in relying upon the provisions of the Indian Trusts Act, 1882 as the same are clearly not applicable in the case of the Appellant Trust as it is undisputedly a public charit....
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....ublic charitable trust under the Bombay/Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950. The assessee has also been registered under the Income-tax Act and has enjoyed the benefit of registration and exemption as a charitable institution over several decades. It has further been granted registration/approval under the new regime of sections 12A/12AA/12AB, including registration vide Form No. 10AC dated 23/09/2021. 2.2. The assessee submitted that, in the absence of a separate written instrument, the application filed before the Charity Commissioner, together with the certificate of registration granted by the Charity Commissioner after due enquiry, constituted documentary evidence of the creation and establishment of the trust. It was further submitted that the assessee has an unbroken record of statutory recognition by various authorities for several decades. 2.3. The assessee filed an application in Form No. 10AB on 29/09/2025 seeking renewal of its registration. During the course of proceedings, the Ld. CIT(E) issued notices dated 15/11/2025 and 14/03/2026, calling upon the assessee, inter alia, to furnish a self-certified copy of the instrument of trust/MOA in terms of Rule 17A(2) of....
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....s and activities have been recognised by various statutory authorities for several decades. It was submitted that the assessee does not have a separate written trust deed or MOA as it was not constituted under such an instrument. The assessee is, however, duly registered under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act, 1950 and has also enjoyed registration under the Income-tax Act for several decades. 4.1. The Ld. AR submitted that Rule 17A(2)(a) and Rule 17A(2)(b) specifically contemplate two distinct situations. While clause (a) applies where the applicant is created or established under an instrument, clause (b) expressly applies where the applicant is created or established otherwise than under an instrument. It was, therefore, submitted that the Ld. CIT(E), by insisting upon production of a formal trust deed in a case falling under Rule 17A(2)(b), had effectively rendered clause (b) otiose. 4.2. It was further submitted that the application filed by the assessee before the Charity Commissioner under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act contained complete particulars concerning the trust, its trustees, its objects and its financial particulars. After conducting the statutory enquir....
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....;ble Supreme Court in Ananda Social & Educational Trust v. CIT reported in [2020] 426 ITR 340 (SC), in support of the proposition that the scope of enquiry at the stage of registration is limited to the statutory parameters prescribed by the Act. 4.8. The Ld. AR further placed reliance upon the recent judgment of the Hon'ble jurisdictional Bombay High Court in Chamber of Tax Consultants v. CIT (Exemptions) reported in [2026] 184 taxmann.com 374 (Bom.), and submitted that the Department could not depart from its earlier position in the absence of any material change warranting a different conclusion. 4.9. The Ld. AR also referred to the decision of the Tribunal in Shree Ram Gopal Temple Trust v. CIT (Exemptions) reported in [2025] 178 taxmann.com 698 (Chandigarh - Trib.), as well as Sri Kodandaramaswamy Temple v. CIT (Exemptions), ITA No. 89/Hyd/2016, order dated 17/06/2016, wherein similar issues concerning absence of a formal trust deed and evidentiary documents were considered. Accordingly, the Ld. AR submitted that the Ld. CIT(E) had adopted an unduly narrow and hyper-technical interpretation of Rule 17A(2), and prayed that the impugned order be set aside and renewa....
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....se, the trust was not created under a formal instrument and the Commissioner had taken a narrow view of the requirement relating to documents evidencing creation of the trust. The Hon'ble High Court held that the expression covered evidentiary documents which afforded a logical basis for inferring the creation of the trust and quashed the rejection of registration. 5.6. The aforesaid principle has also found acceptance in subsequent judicial decisions. In Merciful Jesus Church v. CIT (Exemption) (supra) the Cochin Bench held that Rule 17A itself recognises that a trust/institution need not necessarily be established under an instrument and that what is required is a document evidencing its creation or establishment. 5.7. Likewise, in Tsurphu Labrang (supra), the Tribunal considered a case where the trust was stated to have been founded without a formal instrument and held that the execution of a formal deed was not, by itself, indispensable for registration where the evidence on record established its creation and existence. The aforesaid decision was also approved by Hon'ble Delhi High Court, as recorded in the material placed before us. 5.8. We further find that ....
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....e us are also materially supported by the recent decision of the co-ordinate Mumbai Bench in St. Joseph's High School v. CIT(E), ITA Nos. 5646 & 5849/Mum/2026, order dated 05/08/2026, wherein, in an analogous case involving a public charitable institution registered under the Maharashtra Public Trusts Act and continuously recognised under the Income-tax Act, the Tribunal held that the absence of a formal written trust deed or MOA could not, by itself, constitute a valid ground for refusing renewal of registration u/s 12AB where the assessee had produced cogent documentary evidence evidencing its creation, establishment and continued existence. The Tribunal, accordingly, directed the Ld. CIT(E) to grant renewal of registration. 6.4. The said decision is particularly relevant to the controversy before us, as the statutory provisions, the nature of the objection raised by the Ld. CIT(E), and the evidentiary material relied upon are substantially similar. We, therefore, hold that the Ld. CIT(E) was not justified in rejecting the assessee's application for renewal of registration u/s 12AB merely on the ground that no separate written trust deed or MOA was furnished. 6.5. A....