2019 (11) TMI 1399 - AT - Income Tax

Levy of fees u/s 234E while processing the TDS statements u/s 200A - HELD THAT - The issue was decided by the third member of the Bench in favour of the assessee by holding that fees u/s 234E of the Act can only be charged in respect of delay in filing the statement of TDS for the period after 1st June, 2015. Hence, as per the majority view, the appeals were allowed for statistical purposes. It is apparent from the order of the coordinate Bench in Emsons Exim Pvt. Ltd. ( 2019 (8) TMI 1461 - ITAT MUMBAI ) , the third member has decided the issue taking into consideration, the two divergent views expressed by two non-jurisdictional High Courts. Respectfully following the decision of the coordinate Bench in Dayanand Vaidik Vidayalya 2019 (6) TMI 1482 - ITAT MUMBAI and the decision in the Emsons Exim Pvt. Ltd. ( 2019 (8) TMI 1461 - ITAT MUMBAI ) , we hold that fee u/s 234E of the Act can only be charged in respect of delay in filing the statement of TDS for the period after 1st June, 2015. Since, the issues involved in all the appeals pertain to the assessment year 2013-14, our findings shall mutatis mutandis apply for all the aforesaid appeals. Accordingly, we direct the AO to delete the late fee levied u/s 234E. - Decided in favour of assessee.

Summary

Issues involved:
- Levy of fees under section 234E of the Income Tax Act while processing TDS statements under section 200A for the assessment years 2013-14.

Detailed analysis:
- The appeals were filed against the orders passed by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for the assessment years 2013-14, concerning the levy of fees under section 234E of the Act while processing TDS statements under section 200A. The issues were common and were clubbed for convenience.
- The appellant argued that the amended clauses of section 200A were not applicable to the assessment year 2013-14 and cited a favorable order by the ITAT, Mumbai in a similar case. The respondent, on the other hand, relied on various judgments to support the imposition of late filing fees even before the amendment made by the Finance Act, 2015.
- The Tribunal carefully considered the arguments and referred to previous decisions, including one by the ITAT, Amritsar, and the High Court of Karnataka, which concluded that fees under section 234E could not be levied for the period before 01.06.2015 while processing TDS returns under section 200A. The Tribunal also highlighted similar views taken by other benches.
- In a separate case, due to a difference of opinion between the members of the Bench, the issue was referred to a third member who decided that fees under section 234E could only be charged for delays in filing TDS statements after 01.06.2015. This decision was in line with the majority view of the Bench, which led to the allowance of appeals for statistical purposes.
- Ultimately, the Tribunal upheld the decisions in favor of the assessee, directing the Assessing Officer to delete the late fee levied under section 234E for all the cases pertaining to the assessment year 2013-14. The appeals for the said year were allowed, and the order was pronounced on 28th November 2019.