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Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, JAIPUR BENCHES “A”, JAIPUR
Before: SHRI VIJAY PAL RAO, JM & SHRI VIKRAM SINGH YADAV, AM vk;dj vihy la-@ITA No. 345 & 346/JP/2019
ORDER PER: VIJAY PAL RAO, J.M. These two appeals by the assessee are directed against the separate orders of the ld. CIT(A), Ajmer dated 17/10/2008 and 06/02/2009 for the A.Y. 2004-5 & 2005-06 respectively.
There is delay of 3739 days and 3620 days respectively in filing of these two appeals by the assessee.
None has appeared on behalf of the assessee when these appeals were called for hearing through video conference due to prevailing situation of Covid-19 Pandemic. The notices issued to the assessee
2 ITA 345 & 346/JP/2019_ Sunil Kr. Gupta Vs ITO through RPAD at the address given in the Form No. 36 have been returned back unserved with the postal remarks “the recipient/addressee is not found at the given address”. Accordingly, we propose to hear and dispose of these appeals and particularly the maintainability of the appeals due to inordinate delay in filing of these appeals. The assessee has filed applications for condonation of delay. The contents of the application are as under:
“With reference to caption appeal filed is out of time as permitted in Income Tax Act, 1061 & it is requested to condone the long delay. The main reasons for such delay was mainly as under:-
(1) That due to financial insolvency My Father had to make sale of his business cum residential property to pay off his liabilities or otherwise it could have been threat to his life.
(2) That this resulted into mental break-down of him & due to financial insolvency & sale of property he almost left the city & stayed out of Ajmer. Thus he could not receive or make compliance of any notices/summon of Income Tax Department or any other government agency, which has resulted into such delay. These facts were never stated to me also.
(3) In between my mother (Wife of Sunil Ji Father) also met with a road accident & expired in year 2015. This further broke him & entire family. Now it is me who is taking care of father & whole situation.
3 ITA 345 & 346/JP/2019_ Sunil Kr. Gupta Vs ITO (4) Presently my father is also suffering from anxiety chest pain & high blood pressure resulting into convulsions. Still I have advised him to face the present situation & have produced him before TRO (Income Tax) & who arrested him & sent to Police in joint custody.
(5) That looking to my father’s fatal situation it is requested to consider such delayed appeals files & condonation may be granted as per mercy.”
Though the appeals were filed by the assessee under his signature but the application for condonation of delay is filed by his son Mr. Mohit Gupta.
On the other hand, the ld DR has submitted that there is a delay of more than 10 years and the assessee is explaining the cause of delay only from the year 2015 onwards. Further, the assessee has not explained the cause of delay which is beyond the control of the assessee. The assessee has taken merely an excuse of financial problems which cannot be a reason much less reasonable or sufficient reason for delay in filing the appeals. Thus, the ld DR has submitted that these appeals are not maintainable and liable to be dismissed as barred by limitation.
We have considered the reasons explained by the assessee in the application for condonation of delay and contention of the ld DR. There is no dispute that the delay of more than 10 years in filing of these appeals
4 ITA 345 & 346/JP/2019_ Sunil Kr. Gupta Vs ITO is inordinate delay and therefore, the assessee has to explained the reasons to the satisfaction of the Tribunal. The assesse has explained the reasons in the application as financial crisis in his business, his mental disturbance and death of his wife in the year 2015. As far as the illness of the assessee is concerned, we note that the assessee has filed prescription of the hospital dated 20/01/2019, 05/02/2019 and medical certificate dated 06/03/2019. All these medical record shows that the assessee was having the treatment only for last two months and therefore, the reason due to ill health of the assessee can be considered only for the period from January to March, 2019. Thus, it appears that all these medical records were got prepared and obtained by the assessee just before filing the present appeals on 09/04/2019. The death of the wife in a road accident in the year 2015 can be a reason but for a reasonable delay, post the said accident, therefore, the delay from the year 2008 to 2015 remained unexplained. Therefore, in the facts and circumstances of the case and the reasons as explained by the assessee, we are of the considered opinion that the assessee has failed to explain a reasonable cause for such an inordinate delay of more than 10 years. There is no dispute that while considering the condonation of delay, the court should take a lenient view in interpretation of the sufficient cause. However, the party, who is approaching the court is not allowed to 5 ITA 345 & 346/JP/2019_ Sunil Kr. Gupta Vs ITO misuse the provisions of condonation of delay in under hand way. In any case, the requirement of reasonable cause to the satisfaction of the court cannot be diluted in the garb of taking a lenient view while interpreting the reasonable cause. Hence, in view of the above discussion, we are not satisfied with the reasons explained by the assessee for a delay of more than 10 years in filing the appeals, accordingly, we decline to condone the delay in filing these appeals. Consequently, the appeals of the assessee are not maintainable due to barred by limitation.
In the result, both these appeals of the assessee are dismissed.
Order pronounced in the open court on 22nd September, 2020. Sd/- Sd/- ¼foØe flag ;kno½ ¼fot; iky jko½ (VIKRAM SINGH YADAV) (VIJAY PAL RAO) ys[kk lnL;@Accountant Member U;kf;d lnL;@Judicial Member Tk;iqj@Jaipur fnukad@Dated:- 22/09/2020 *Ranjan आदेश की प्रतिलिपि अग्रेf’ात@ब्वचल वf जीम वतकमत वितूंतकमक जवरू vihykFkhZ@The Appellant- Shri Sunil Kumar Gupta, Ajmer. 1. izR;FkhZ@ The Respondent- The I.T.O., Ward 2(2), Ajmer. 2. vk;dj vk;qDr@ CIT 3. vk;dj vk;qDr¼vihy½@The CIT(A) 4. विभागीय प्रतिनिधि] आयकर अपीलीय अधिकरण] जयपुर@क्त्ए प्ज्Aज्ए Jंपचनत 5. xkMZ QkbZy@ Guard File (ITA No. 345 & 346/JP/2019) 6. vkns'kkuqlkj@ By order,
सहायक पंजीकार@Aेेज. त्महपेजतंत