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Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, “E” BENCH, MUMBAI
Before: SHRI SAKTIJIT DEY & SHRI RAMIT KOCHAR
Date of Hearing – 23.08.2019 Date of Order – 28.08.2019
O R D E R PER BENCH
Captioned appeals by the assessee are directed against common order dated 27thMarch 2017, passed by the learned Commissioner of 4 Emsons Exim Pvt. Ltd.
Income Tax (Appeals)–59, Mumbai, pertaining to the assessment year 2015–16 and 2016–17.
The common ground of challenge in all these appeals is levy of fee under section 234E of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (for short "the Act") while processing the TDS statement u/s 200A of the Act.
It is the say of the assessee that the provision empowering levy of fee under section 234E of the Act was introduced to section 200A of the Act with insertion of sub–clause (c) to sub–section (1) by Finance Act, 2015, w.e.f. 1st June 2015. Therefore, it will apply prospectively and not to the TDS statements for any period prior to 1st June 2015. While deciding the issue, there was a difference of opinion between the members constituting the Bench. While the Accountant Member held that the provision of section 200A(1)(c) will apply retrospectively, the Judicial Member held that levy of fee under section 200A(1)(c) would apply prospectively to any period falling after 1st June 2015. Due to difference in opinion between the Members constituting the Bench, the Hon’ble President referred the issue to the Third Member, who framed the following question for deciding the issue:–
“Whether the fees prescribed u/s 234E of the Act can be levied while processing return u/s 200A of the Act for any assessment year / period prior to 1st June 2015 in the instant cases, when there is no decision of jurisdictional High Court and when there are two divergent views expressed by two non–jurisdictional High Courts?
5 Emsons Exim Pvt. Ltd.
While deciding the issue, the Third Member agreed with the view expressed by the Judicial Member and held that fee under section 234E of the Act can only be charged in respect of delay in filing the statement of TDS for the period after 1st June 2015. Thus, as per the majority view, appeals are allowed for statistical purposes.