YAKUBMIYA NABIMIYA BELIM,KHEDA vs. THE ITO, WARD-3, NADIAD

The captioned appeal has been filed at the instance of the Assessee against the order dated 30.09.2024 passed by the Learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal)/National Faceless Appeal Centre(NFAC) arising in the matter of assessment order passed under s. 143(3) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (here-in-after referred to as "the Act") relevant to the Assessment Year 2017-18.

I observe that there is a delay of 233 days in filing the present appeal before the Tribunal. The assessee, in the application for condonation of delay, has stated that the notice was received through e-mail but was not communicated to him by his tax consultant. He further stated that he has studied only up to the 10th standard and, therefore, is not conversant with modern means of communication such as the internet, e-mail, or SMS. Due to his limited education and lack of knowledge, he was unable to access the e-mails/SMS or respond to the notices in time. In view of these reasons, the Asst. Year 2017-18

The Ld. DR relied upon the Assessment Order and the order of the Ld. CIT(A).

On perusal of the records, it is observed that the assessee was afforded opportunities of hearing to furnish details, clarifications, and explanations to substantiate the source of cash deposits during the demonetization period. However, assessee failed to furnish the substantial details or explanations before the Ld. CIT(A). Consequently, the Ld. CIT(A), based on the material available on record, upheld the action of the Assessing Officer and dismissed the appeal ex parte. The Ld. AR submitted that although notices were issued by the Ld. CIT(A), the assessee could not respond as he was unaware of the notices, since he is not highly educated and is entirely dependent on his tax consultant for matters relating to Income-tax procedures. The Ld. AR further prayed that the matter may be remanded to the file of the Ld. CIT(A) for proper adjudication on merits. I note that the Ld. CIT(A) has not dealt with the merits of the case. Since the matter has not been adjudicated on merits, I deem it appropriate to remand the matter to the file of the Ld. CIT(A) for proper adjudication after verifying all relevant details furnished by the assessee. Needless to say, the assessee shall be afforded due opportunity of being heard in accordance with the principles of natural justice. The assessee shall furnish all relevant documents, evidences, and bank details before the Revenue authorities and to comply with the notices issued by the Ld. CIT(A) without seeking unnecessary adjournments. Accordingly, the appeal of the assessee is allowed for statistical purposes.