D.C.I.T CIR - 5,KOLKATA, KOLKATA vs. M/S BAGARIA MORE CO LTD, KOLKATA

These appeals of the revenue are against different orders of the CIT(A) against the orders of assessment framed u/s 147 / 143(3) / 144 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 (hereinafter referred to as the ‘Act’) in the case of different Assessee’s for different Assessment years as set out in the cause title above.

Recently the CBDT has issued Circular No. 21/2015, dated 10th December, 2015, whereby the monetary limits for filing of appeals by the Department before Income Tax Appellate Tribunal and High Courts and SLP before Supreme Court have been increased as measure for reducing Litigation. The revised monetary limits laid down in para-3 of this Circular and the manner of computing tax effect as laid down in para-4 of this Circular are as follows: “3. Henceforth, Appeals/ SLPs shall not be filed in cases where the tax effect does not exceed the monetary limits given hereunder: - 3 4 Sl. No. Appeals in Income-tax matters Monetary Limit (in Rs) 1. Before Appellate Tribunal 10,00,000/- 2. Before High Court 20,00,000/- 3. Before Supreme Court 25,00,000/- It is clarified that an appeal should not be filed merely because the tax effect in a case exceeds the monetary limits prescribed above. Filing of appeal in such cases is to be decided on merits of the case.

In para-10 of the said circular it has further been clarified that the revised monetary limits will apply retrospectively. The relevant para-10 of the Circular reads thus: “10. This instruction will apply retrospectively to pending appeals and appeals to be filed henceforth in High Courts/ Tribunals. Pending appeals below the specified tax limits in para 3 above may be withdrawn/ not pressed. Appeals before the Supreme Court will be governed by the instructions on this subject, operative at the time when such appeal was filed.”

In the appeals filed by the Revenue, listed in the cause title to this order, the tax effect is less than Rs.10,00,000/-. Though these appeals have been filed by the revenue prior to the CBDT circular No. 21/2015 and were within the monetary limit in the form of tax effect for filing appeals before Tribunal at the time of filing of the appeals, in view of para-10 of the Circular of CBDT, even such appeals will be governed by the new monetary limits laid down in the CBDT Circular No.21/2015 referred to above and are liable to dismissed as contrary to the CBDT Circular and are liable to be dismissed in limine, as unadmitted.

It is a settled law that the Circulars issued by CBDT are binding on the Revenue. This position was confirmed by the Apex Court in the case of Commissioner of Customs vs Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. reported in 267 ITR 272 wherein their Lordships examined the earlier decisions of the Apex Court with regard to binding nature of the Circular and laid down that when a circular issued by the Board remains in operation then the Revenue is bound by it and cannot be allowed to plead that it is not valid or that it is contrary to the terms of the statute. The 4 5 appeal under consideration has certainly been filed contrary to the Circular issued by the CBDT Circular No.21 dated 10.12.2015. 5.1. In the event the Revenue finds at a later point of time that the tax effect in any of these appeals are/is more than Rs.10 lakhs or despite low tax effect any appeal of the revenue is maintainable, the revenue is at liberty to move this Tribunal for recall of this order. 5.2. Since revenue’s appeal in referred to in the cause title of this order, is being dismissed as unadmitted, the C.O. filed by the Assessee in the aforesaid appeal, which is purely supportive in nature i.e., CO No.84/Kol/2013 is also dismissed as infructuous.

In view of the above, We hold that the appeals filed by the Department, against the impugned orders of the Ld. CIT(A), are contrary to the policy decision of the Department and as such the appeals filed by the Department are dismissed in limine.

In the result, all the appeals by the Revenue are dismissed.