Loading judgment…
Facts
The assessee's appeal for AY 2015-16 arises from an order refusing Section 11 exemption due to failure to file Form 10 tax audit report by the due date. The Revenue argued that filing Form 10 is mandatory, while the assessee contended it is a directory provision.
Held
The Tribunal held that the filing of Form 10 is a directory provision, not mandatory. Citing judicial precedents, it was noted that the assessee had indeed filed the form online, albeit after the due date, which aligns with established legal interpretations.
Key Issues
Whether the filing of Form 10 tax audit report is a mandatory or directory requirement for claiming exemption under Section 11 of the Income Tax Act.
Sections Cited
11, 154
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
Income Tax Appellate Tribunal, DELHI BENCH ‘C’, NEW DELHI
Before: Sh. Satbeer Singh Godara & Sh. Avdhesh Kumar Mishra
Asstt. Year: 2015-16 Bal Sewa Ashram (Orphanage), Vs Income Tax Officer(E), Tosham Road, Near Railway Station, Rohtak, Bhiwani, Haryana-127021 Haryana-124001 (APPELLANT) (RESPONDENT) PAN No. AAATB6945P Assessee by : Sh. Deepam Jain, Adv. Revenue by : Sh. Om Prakash, Sr. DR Date of Hearing: 01.10.2025 Date of Pronouncement: 01.10.2025 ORDER
Per Satbeer Singh Godara, Judicial Member:
This assessee’s appeal for Assessment Year 2015-16, arises against the CIT(A)/NFAC, Delhi’s DIN & order No. ITBA/NFAC/S/250/2024-25/1071355215(1) dated 19.12.2024, in proceedings u/s 154 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (in short “the Act”).
Heard both the parties at length. Case file perused.
It transpires during the course of hearing that both the learned lower authorities have refused section 11 exemption to the assessee for the sole reason that it had failed to file/upload it’s corresponding Form 10 tax audit report within the
The Revenue vehemently argues in this factual backdrop that the assessee’s foregoing compliance of filing/uploading it’s Form 10 tax audit report is very much a mandatory provision; and, therefore, we ought to uphold the same. Learned departmental representative could hardly dispute that various recent judicial precedents i.e. CIT Vs. Xavier Kelavani Mandal (P.) Ltd. (2014) 41 taxmann.com 184 (Guj.) have already settled in the assessee’s favour and against the department that the above compliance of filing/uploading of Form 10 is a directory provision only. This is indeed coupled with the fact that the assessee had duly filed/uploaded the above Form 10 online on e-filing portal on 26.06.2017 as per the learned Assessing Officer rectification order dated 05.08.2020. We thus find merit in the assessee’s instant sole substantive ground and direct the learned Assessing Officer to finalize his consequential computation afresh as per law in very terms.