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Facts
The assessee, a charitable trust, had its provisional registration u/s 80G(5)(vi) cancelled by the CIT(E) due to alleged non-compliance with notices. The assessee claims the notices were not properly served or were issued with insufficient time, and attributes delays to a trustee's illness.
Held
The Tribunal held that the assessee, being an existing trust, should have applied under clause (i) of the first proviso to section 80G(5), not clause (iii) as a new trust. The error in mentioning the wrong clause was deemed curable.
Key Issues
Whether the cancellation of 80G registration was justified based on the assessee's compliance with notices, and if an existing trust incorrectly applying as a new trust constitutes a curable defect.
Sections Cited
80G(5), 80G(5)(vi), 2(31)(iv), 12A, 12AA
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Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, KOLKATA ‘D’ BENCH, KOLKATA
Before: SHRI GEORGE MATHAN & SHRI RAKESH MISHRA
order
: 23-July-2025 ORDER
PER RAKESH MISHRA, ACCOUNTANT MEMBER:
This appeal filed by the assessee is against the order of the Ld. Commissioner of Income Tax (Exemption), Kolkata [hereinafter referred to as the ‘Ld. CIT (Exemption)/Ld. CIT(E)’] passed in respect of registration u/s 80G(5)(vi) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the Act’) dated 28.12.2024.
■ The assessee was an existing trust and had been granted approval under section 12AA as well as under section 80G earlier, but instead of applying under clause (i) of the first proviso to section 80G(5), it applied under clause (iii) as a new trust. If it had applied under clause (i), there was no need of issuing any provisional certificate and as per the second proviso to section 80G(5) the Principal Commissioner or Commissioner would have passed an order in writing granting it approval for a period of five years and there was no requirement for seeking any provisional approval which is required only for a new trust. [Para 11]