VINOD GUPTA,KOLKATA vs. ITO, WARD-31(1),KOLKATA, KOLKATA

The assessee in the present case is an individual, who filed his return of income for the year under consideration on 30.03.2014 declaring total income of Rs.1,96,510/-. In the assessment completed under section 143(3) vide an order dated 25.01.2016, the total income of the assessee was determined by the Assessing Officer at Rs.36,04,480/-. Against the said order, an appeal was preferred by the assessee before the ld. CIT(Appeals) and since there was no compliance on the part of the assessee to the notices issued by him from time to time fixing the said appeal for hearings on 09.05.2016, 06.06.2016 and 04.08.2016, the ld. CIT(Appeals) dismissed the appeal of the assessee vide his impugned ./2016 Assessment year: 2013-2014 Page 2 of 3 order passed ex-parte. Aggrieved by the order of the ld. CIT(Appeals), the assessee has preferred this appeal before the Tribunal.

I have heard the arguments of both the sides and also perused the relevant material available on record. As submitted by the ld. counsel for the assessee, the assessee could not attend or furnish the requisite papers to the Authorized Representative for hearing before the ld. CIT(Appeals) as his son Shri Aditya Gupta, who is mentally and physically retarded, was under medical diagnosis. Since this submission made by the ld. counsel for the assessee is duly supported by the relevant medical certificates as well as the affidavit filed by the assessee, I am satisfied that there was a sufficient cause for the non-appearance on the part of the assessee at the time of hearings fixed during the course of appellate proceedings before the ld. CIT(Appeals). I, therefore, set aside the impugned order passed by the ld. CIT(Appeals) ex-parte and remit the matter back to him for disposing of the appeal of the assessee afresh after giving proper and sufficient opportunity of being heard to the assessee. As undertaken by the ld. counsel for the assessee before me, the assessee shall make due and proper compliance before the ld. CIT(Appeals) in order to enable him to dispose of his appeal expeditiously.

In the result, the appeal of the assessee is treated as allowed for statistical purposes. Order pronounced in the open Court on March 31, 2017.