2019 (5) TMI 1847 - AT - Income Tax

Delay in E- filing Appeal - Period of limitation - Appeal filed manually - According to the Ld. D.R. it is a mandatory requirement of law to e-file the appeal with effect from 01.03.2016. Admittedly the appeal was filed only on 22.12.2018 therefore there was a delay of 2-1/2 years - HELD THAT - When the appeal was filed by the assessee manually if it is not in tune with the statutory requirement it is for the CIT(Appeals) either to issue a defect memo or to return the appeal filed manually to the assessee. Admittedly no such action was taken by the CIT(Appeals). The appeal was efiled on 22.12.2018. Therefore this Tribunal is of the considered opinion that when the assessee admittedly filed the appeal manually on 02.05.2016 and also e-filed on 22.12.2018 the assessee s efiling of appeal would relate back to the original date of filing appeal manually on 02.05.2016. In other words there is no delay in filing the appeal. If e-filing of appeal on 22.12.2018 relates back to manual filing of appeal on 02.05.2016 there is no delay at all. CIT(Appeals) ought to have disposed of the appeal on merit. In view of the above we are unable to uphold the orders of the authorities below. Accordingly orders of both the authorities below are set aside and the entire issue is remitted back to the file of the CIT(Appeals) to consider the appeal on merits.

Summary

Issues:
1. Delay in filing appeal - manual vs. e-filing

Analysis:
The appeal in question was against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for the assessment year 2013-14. The appellant, represented by Ms. A. Sushma Harini, argued that the appeal was filed manually on 02.05.2016 and later e-filed on 22.12.2018. The Commissioner found a delay of 2-1/2 years due to the mandatory e-filing requirement from 01.03.2016. The Departmental Representative, Shri AR.V. Sreenivasan, supported this view, stating that no explanation was provided for the delay, leading to the appeal's rejection.

The Tribunal, comprising Shri N.R.S. Ganesan and Shri A. Mohan Alankamony, noted that the appeal was indeed manually filed on 02.05.2016 without any defect memo or return by the Revenue. The subsequent e-filing on 22.12.2018 was considered to relate back to the original manual filing date, effectively eliminating any delay. The Tribunal emphasized that since the appellant complied with the initial filing requirement, the appeal should have been considered on its merits by the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals).

Consequently, the Tribunal set aside the orders of the lower authorities and remitted the issue back to the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) for a merit-based consideration, emphasizing the importance of providing a reasonable opportunity to the assessee. The appeal was ultimately allowed, with the decision announced on 10th May 2019 in Chennai.