CHRISTOPHER EDUCATIONAL TRUST,PASCHIM MEDINIPUR vs. CIT, KOL-XIX, KOLKATA, KOLKATA

This is an appeal filed by the assessee Trust against the order of Ld. CIT, Kol-XIX, Kolkata dated 12.11.2014 for not granting registration u/s. 12AA of the Income-tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the “Act”) from the date of inception of the Trust or in the alternative from the date on which the trust applied for registration u/s. 12AA of the Act.

The only issue that has been raised by the assessee Trust is that the assessee applied for registration u/s. 12AA of the Act on 31.05.2007 (Paper book page 1 wherein the seal/stamp of the office of the Ld. CIT and the date of receipt of the application for registration u/s. 12AA of the Act is endorsed as 31.05.2007). The assessee is aggrieved by the fact that the Ld. CIT after making enquiries from the DCIT, Circle-2, Midnapore and JCIT, Range-2, Midnapore and the AO of the assessee was pleased to grant registration u/s. 12A of the Act, since the applicant Trust satisfied all the conditions laid down u/s. 12A of the Act. The only grievance of the assessee is that since it had applied on 31.05.2007 in Form no. 10A before the Ld. CIT, then as per section 12AA(2) of the Act, the Ld. CIT ought to have granted the registration within six months or in the alternative as per the 2 Christopher Educational Trust, Special Bench decision of the Tribunal in Bhagwad Swarup Shri Shri Devraha Baba Memorial Shri Hari Parmarth Dham Trust Vs. CIT, Dehradun (2008) 111 ITD 175 (Del.)(SB) wherein the Special Bench was pleased to hold that in case where Commissioner does not pass or grant an order refusing registration of Trust within six months from the end of the month in which application for registration u/s. 12A of the Act was filed, registration would be deemed to have been granted to Trust automatically on expiry of period specified in sec. 12AA(2) of the Act. Since facts enumerated above do not require any other material for adjudicating the issue before us, we proceed with the same.

We have heard rival submissions and gone through facts and circumstances of the case carefully. We note that the assessee Trust has applied for registration in Form no. 10A which was filed on 31.05.2007. The Ld. CIT has called for report from DCIT, Cir-2, Midnapore and JCIT, Range-2, Midnapore and then the AO of the assessee who in turn have suggested for grant of registration to the assessee Trust u/s. 12A of the Act. The Ld. CIT after going through the documents submitted by the assessee Trust was of the opinion that the assessee Trust satisfied all the conditions laid down u/s. 12A of the Act. However, he granted registration w.e.f. 12.11.2014. The main grievance raised by the assessee before us is that the Ld. CIT ought to have given the registration after the expiry of six months from the date of submission of application in Form 10 i.e. from 31.05.2007 when the documents were submitted and not from 12.11.2014. We find force in the argument of the Ld. AR that as per the Special Bench order in Bhagwad Swarup Shri Shri Devraha Baba Memorial Shri Hari Parmarth Dham Trust (supra) wherein it was held that if the Ld. CIT has not granted registration or refused registration within six months from the end of the month in which an application for registration u/s. 12A of the Act was filed, registration would be deemed to have been granted to the Trust automatically on the expiry of period specified in sec. 12AA of the Act. We note that in Civil Appeal No. 1478 of 2016 in SLP (C) No. 9705 of 2009 the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India by order dated 16.02.2016 in the case of CIT Vs. Society for the Promn. Of Edn, Allahabad, was pleased to uphold the view of the Hon’ble High Court of Allahabad that “once an application is made under the said provision (12AA) and in case the same is not responded to within six months it would be taken that the application is registered under the provision”. The Hon’ble Supreme Court 3 Christopher Educational Trust, upheld the Hon’ble Allahabad High Court’s order and observed that the registration would operate only after six months from the date of application. Hence, we direct the Ld. CIT to grant registration u/s. 12AA of the Act w.e.f 01.12.2007 to the assessee trust and not w.e.f. 12.11.2014 as has been ordered in the impugned order