THE GURUKUL TRUST ,DELHI vs. DCIT (EXEMPTION) , DELHI

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ITA 5949/DEL/2026Status: DisposedITAT Delhi23 June 20262 pages
AI SummaryRemanded

What did the Tribunal hold?

The ITAT held that it would be in the interest of justice to restore the matter to the learned CIT(Exemptions) for fresh consideration. The Tribunal found that the learned CIT(Exemptions) had passed an ex-parte, non-speaking order, which is procedurally flawed. The reasoning was that the assessee was not given a reasonable opportunity of being heard, and the order lacked proper justification. The ratio decidendi is that an order rejecting an application for registration under Section 12A must be a speaking order and must be passed after affording a reasonable opportunity of hearing to the applicant, adhering to the principles of natural justice. Accordingly, the ITAT set aside the impugned order of the learned CIT(Exemptions) and directed the CIT(Exemptions) to decide the matter afresh after providing the assessee with a reasonable opportunity of being heard and thereafter passing a speaking order in accordance with the law. No issue was expressly left undecided. The operative direction is to remand the matter for fresh adjudication.

What were the facts?

The assessee, M/s The Gurukul Trust, filed an appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Delhi Bench-E, against an order dated 18th March, 2026, passed by the learned CIT(Exemptions), Delhi. The CIT(Exemptions) had rejected the assessee's application in Form 10AB for registration under Section 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961. The assessment year is not specified. No one appeared on behalf of the assessee before the ITAT. The ITAT noted that the CIT(Exemptions) had passed an ex-parte, non-speaking order. The amount in dispute is not stated. The procedural history involves the rejection of the Section 12A registration application by the CIT(Exemptions) and the subsequent appeal by the assessee to the ITAT.

What were the issues?

1. Whether the learned CIT(Exemptions) erred in rejecting the assessee's application for registration under Section 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961, without affording a reasonable opportunity of being heard to the assessee and by passing a non-speaking order? Assessee's contentions: The judgment does not record any arguments made by the assessee, as no one appeared on their behalf. However, the ITAT's decision implies that the assessee would have likely argued that the order passed by the CIT(Exemptions) was bad in law due to being ex-parte and non-speaking, thus violating principles of natural justice. Revenue's contentions: The learned CIT-DR argued the case. The judgment does not detail the specific arguments made by the CIT-DR, but it notes that the ITAT considered these arguments and perused the record before passing its order.

Which sections of the Income-tax Act were involved?

Section 12A

AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below

IN THE INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL DELHI BENCH-E NEW DELHI BEFORE SHRI MAHAVIR SINGH, VICE PRESIDENT AND SHRI MANISH AGARWAL, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER ITA No.5949/Del/2026 Assessment Year N.A MIs The Gurukul Trust, D-251, Country Club Road, Naib Sarai Road, Delhi 110 068. PAN AAATT3993R. (Appellant) Vs. CIT(Exemption) , Delhi. (Respondent) Appellant by Respondent by None_ Shri Raghunath, CIT-DR_ Date of hearing Date of pronouncement 22.06.2026 22.06.2026 ORDER Per Bench: This appeal by the assessee is directed against the order of learned CIT(Exemptions) , Delhi dated 18th March, 2026 whereby the application of the assessee in Form 1OAB for registration under Section 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the Act' ) was rejected: 2 Nobody appeared on behalf of the assessee before us at the time of hearing: It is observed that the learned CIT(Exemptions) has passed an ex-parte non-speaking order. In the above circumstances, after hearing the arguments of learned CIT-DR and perusal of record, we are of the view that it would be in the interest of justice to restore the matter to learned CIT(Exemptions) for fresh consideration: Accordingly , we set aside the impugned order of learned CIT(Exemptions) with a direction to decide the matter afresh after affording reasonable opportunity of being heard to the assessee and thereafter, pass a speaking order in accordance with law. 2 ITA No.5949/Del/2026 3 In the result, the appeal of the assessee is allowed for statistical purposes: Decision pronounced in the open Court on conclusion of hearing on 22n June, 2026. Sdl- (MANISH AGARWAL) ACCOUNTANT MEMBER (MAHAVIR SINGH) VICE PRESIDENT Date 23.06.2026 VK

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