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आदेश/Order
Per Sudhanshu Srivastava, Judicial Member:
This appeal is preferred by the assessee against the order dated 02.03.2021 passed by the National Faceless Appeal Centre, (NFAC) Delhi and pertains assessment year 2012-13.
The assessee has raised the following grounds of appeal:-
That the order of Learned Assessing Officer is bad, and against law and facts.
2. That the Learned Commissioner of Income Tax (appeal) has erred by not condoning the delay of 23 days despite of fact that there was no lapse on part of appellant & delay was -Chd-2021 Mining Officer, Mohali 2 caused due to fact that the date of receipt of assessment order was wrongly taken by staff of counsel.
3. That the Learned Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeal) has erred by confirming the demand of Rs 1,00,507/- made by assessing officer vide para no. 12 to 13 of assessment order.
4. That the appellant craves leave to add, amend, alter or withdraw any ground of appeal before final hearing.
At the outset, it was brought to our notice that this appeal before the Tribunal has been filed late by 23 days. Our attention was drawn to the Affidavit filed by the assessee in this regard as well as delay- condonation application, wherein, it has been stated that the delay was due to lock- down imposed during the month of March and April 2021.
It has been prayed that the delay may be condoned.
Per contra, the Ld. Sr. Departmental Representative had no objection to condone the delay in view of the lock down during March and April 2021.
Accordingly, this appeal is admitted.
The main grievance of the assessee, at this juncture, is that the NFAC had dismissed the assessee’s appeal in limine by not condoning the delay of 27 days and confirming the demand of Rs. 1,00,507/-made by the Assessing officer. It is seen from the records that the due date of filing of appeal before the NFAC was 28.04.2019 but the appeal was filed on 25.05.2019 and, thus, there was a delay of 27 days in filing of appeal before the NFAC. It has been stated in the impugned order that -Chd-2021 Mining Officer, Mohali 3 no reason for delay was submitted by the assessee before the NFAC and therefore, in the absence of any ‘sufficient cause”, the appeal of the assessee was being dismissed. It is the prayer of the assessee that the appeal should be decided on the merits by the NFAC.
Per contra, the Ld. Sr. DR has opposed the prayer of the assessee and has submitted that since the assessee had not shown any reasonable or sufficient cause for delay in filing the appeal before the NFAC, the appeal had rightly been dismissed by the NFAC.
Having heard both the parties, and after having gone through the records, we deem it appropriate to restore the file to the NFAC with a direction to the assessee to demonstrate with cogent evidence, the reason for filing the appeal belatedly by 27 days before it. Thereafter, if the NFAC finds the delay to be condonable, the appeal will be admitted and heard on merits by the NFAC. The NFAC shall of course afford adequate opportunity to the assessee to present its case.
In the final result, the appeal of the assessee stand allowed for statistical purposes.
Order pronounced on 15.02.2022.