SHRI ANANDPURI SATSANG TRUST vs. COMMISSIONER OF INCOME TAX EXEMPTIONS CHANDIGARH

Facts

The petitioner, Shri Anandpur Satsang Trust, is seeking to quash an order dated April 28, 2023, by which their application for registration under Section 80G(5) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, was rejected. The Trust was created on February 13, 2008. The rejection was based on the ground that Form 10AB, required under Clause (iii) of the first proviso to sub-section (5) of Section 80G, was not filed within the prescribed time. The respondent cited Circular No. 12 of 2021, Circular No. 16 of 2021, and Circular No. 8/2022, which extended the time for filing such applications. The last date for filing was September 30, 2022, and the petitioner filed their application on October 1, 2022, a delay of one day. The respondent's stand is that the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions) has no power to condone this delay.

Held

The High Court held that the rejection of the petitioner's application for registration under Section 80G(5) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, was not sustainable. The Court found that the delay in filing Form 10AB was only one day. The Court observed that this minimal delay, in itself, should not be a ground to reject the petitioner's application. The Court relied on the fact that the petitioner had filed their application on October 1, 2022, which was just one day after the last date of September 30, 2022. The Court set aside the order dated April 28, 2023, and remanded the matter back to the competent authority. The competent authority was directed to pass a fresh order without considering the delay in filing Form 10AB. The Court did not expressly leave any issue undecided.

Key Issues

1. Whether the rejection of the petitioner's application for registration under Section 80G(5) of the Income Tax Act, 1961, is sustainable when the delay in filing Form 10AB was only one day, despite the existence of circulars extending time for filing such applications? Assessee's Contention: The petitioner argued that the delay of a single day in filing Form 10AB should not be a ground for rejecting their application, especially considering the circulars that provided for time extensions. They sought to have the rejection order quashed. Revenue's Contention: The respondent contended that the petitioner was obligated to file the application by September 30, 2022, and that the petitioner filed Form 10AB on October 1, 2022. The respondent asserted that the Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemptions) lacked the power to condone the delay in filing Form 10AB.