2019 (10) TMI 189 - AT - Income Tax

Period of computation of interest u/s. 201(1A) - addition u/s 40(a)(ia) - short deduction of TDS - Contention of the Ld. AR is that the Supreme Court in the case of Hindusthan Coca-Cola Beverages Pvt. Ltd. vs. CIT 2007 (8) TMI 12 - SUPREME COURT held that interest u/s. 201(1A) of the Act is to be charged till the date of payment of tax by deductee-assessee - HELD THAT - In the present case, the Assessing Officer has to consider the short deduction of TDS and thereafter, he shall charge interest u/s. 201(1A) of the Act from the date of deductible tax till the date on which the deductee-assessee paid the tax on its total income. With this observation, we remit this issue to the file of the Assessing Officer to re-compute the interest u/s. 201(1A) of the Act.

Summary

Issues:
Delay in filing appeal before Tribunal; Charging of interest u/s. 201(1A) of the Income Tax Act.

Analysis:
1. Delay in filing appeal before Tribunal:
The appeal was filed with a delay of 15 days, and the assessee submitted a condonation petition explaining the reasons for the delay. The Tribunal found the reasons provided by the assessee to be valid and condoned the delay, admitting the appeal for adjudication.

2. Charging of interest u/s. 201(1A) of the Income Tax Act:
The Assessing Officer found a short deduction of tax by the assessee and treated them as an assessee in default u/s. 201(1A) of the Act. On appeal, the CIT(A) agreed with the assessee that they cannot be treated as an assessee in default based on the Supreme Court judgment in Hindusthan Coca-Cola case. However, the CIT(A) directed the assessee to furnish further documents for verification. The CIT(A) confirmed the interest charged u/s. 201(1A) based on the Supreme Court judgment. The assessee argued that the interest should be charged only till the date of payment of tax by the deductee-assessee, as per the Supreme Court ruling. The Tribunal remitted the issue back to the Assessing Officer to re-compute the interest u/s. 201(1A) based on the Supreme Court judgment.

3. Conclusion:
The Tribunal partly allowed the appeal for statistical purposes, remitting the issue of interest computation u/s. 201(1A) back to the Assessing Officer. The judgment emphasized the applicability of the Supreme Court ruling in determining the period for charging interest under the Income Tax Act, providing clarity on the legal position and directing the Assessing Officer to re-calculate the interest accordingly.