Reasonable cause for delayed compliance with tax notices can preclude penalties where reassessment concludes after substantive replies.

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....Reasonable cause under section 273B excused initial non-compliance with notices issued under section 142(1) during reassessment proceedings. The assessee's explanation that counsel's assistant was unavailable was considered plausible because the assessee subsequently participated, furnished the required replies, and enabled completion of reassessment under section 143(3) read with section 147 rather than by best judgment assessment. The ITAT therefore treated the subsequent conduct as supporting reasonable cause and deleted the penalties imposed for failure to comply with the notices for both assessment years.....