2018 (9) TMI 1972 - AT - Income Tax

Disallowance u/s 14A - conflicting decision in the appeals for the very same assessment year - HELD THAT - Admittedly both the assessee and Revenue filed appeals for the assessment year 2012-13 against the very same order of the CIT(Appeals). In the assessee s appeal the disallowance was confirmed. However in the Revenue s appeal the matter was remitted back to the file of the Assessing Officer. Therefore apparently there is a conflicting judicial opinion. This happened due to the negligence of assessee and Revenue in not bringing to the notice of the Bench the pendency of other appeal at the time of hearing. Had it been brought to the notice of the Bench the appeals would have been clubbed and common order would have been passed. Since such an exercise was not done it resulted in conflicting judicial view. Therefore this Tribunal is of the considered opinion that the matter needs to be re-heard together. Accordingly the orders passed by this Tribunal are hereby recalled. The Registry is directed to post both the appeals for final disposal before regular Bench on 14.11.2018. Since the date of hearing was announced in the presence of both the parties it may not be necessary for the Registry to issue a separate notice of hearing.

Summary

Issues:
Conflicting decisions in appeals for the same assessment year.

Analysis:
The Revenue filed Miscellaneous Petitions citing conflicting decisions in appeals for the same assessment year. The Departmental Representative highlighted that in the assessee's appeal, the disallowance under Section 14A of the Income-tax Act was confirmed, whereas in the Revenue's appeal for the same year, the matter was remitted back to the Assessing Officer. This discrepancy led to conflicting judicial opinions. Both the assessee and Revenue had filed appeals against the CIT(Appeals) order for the assessment year 2012-13. The Tribunal noted that the conflicting views arose due to the negligence of both parties in not informing the Bench about the pendency of the other appeal during the hearing. Consequently, the Tribunal decided that the matter needed to be reheard together to avoid conflicting decisions.

The Tribunal recalled the orders passed in the appeals and directed both appeals to be posted for final disposal before the regular Bench. The Tribunal emphasized that had the parties informed the Bench about the other appeal, the appeals would have been clubbed, and a common order would have been passed, preventing conflicting judicial views. The Tribunal considered it necessary to re-hear the matter jointly to address the conflicting opinions. As a result, both Miscellaneous Petitions filed by the Revenue were allowed, and the date for the final disposal was set for 14th November 2018 without the need for a separate notice, as the date was announced in the presence of both parties during the hearing.

In conclusion, the Tribunal recognized the need for a rehearing of the appeals to avoid conflicting judicial opinions arising from the negligence of the parties. The decision to recall the previous orders and schedule a joint hearing aimed to ensure a consistent and fair resolution of the appeals for the same assessment year.