Section 64 - Insertion of new section 273A - Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 1975

64. Insertion of new section 273A. After section 273 of the Income-tax Act, the following section hall be inserted, namely: 273A. Power to reduce or waive penalty, etc., in certain cases. (1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, the Commissioner may, in his discretion, whether on his own motion or otherwise, (i) reduce or waive the amount of penalty imposed or imposable on a person under clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 271 for failure, without reasonable cause, to furnish the return of total income which he was required to furnish under sub-section (2) of section 139; or (ii) reduce or waive the amount of penalty imposed or imposable on a person under clause (iii) of sub-section (2) of section 271; or (iii) reduce or waive the amount of interest paid or payable under sub-section (8) of section 139 or section 215 or section 217 or the penalty imposed or imposable under section 273, if he is satisfied that such person (a) in the case referred to in clause (i), has, prior to the issue of a notice to him under sub-section (2) of section 139, voluntarily and in good faith made full and true disclosure of his income; (b) in the case referred to in clause (ii), has, prior to the detection by the Income-tax Officer, of the concealment of particulars of income or of the inaccuracy of particulars furnished in respect of such income, voluntarily and in good faith, made full and true disclosure of such particulars; (c) in the cases referred to in clause (iii), has, prior to the issue of a notice to him under sub-section (2) of section 139, or where no such notice has been issued and the period for the issue of such notice has expired, prior to the issue of notice to him under section 148, voluntarily and in good faith made full and true disclosure of his income and has paid the tax on the income so disclosed, and also has, in all the cases referred to in clauses (a), (b) and (c), co-operated in any enquiry relating to the assessment of his income and has either paid or made satisfactory arrangements for the payment of any tax or interest payable in consequence of an order passed under this Act in respect of the relevant assessment year. Explanation. For the purposes of this sub-section, a person shall be deemed to have made full and true disclosure of his income or of the particulars relating thereto in any case where the excess of income assessed over the income returned is of such a nature as not to attract the provisions of clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 271. (2) Notwithstanding anything contained in subjection (1), (a) if in a case the penalty imposed or imposable under clause (i) of sub-section (1) of section 271 or the minimum penalty imposable under section 273 for the relevant assessment year, or, where such disclosure relates to more than one assessment year, the aggregate of the penalty imposed or imposable under the said clause or of the minimum penalty imposable under the said section for those years, exceeds a sum of fifty thousand rupees, or (b) if in a case falling under clause (c) of sub-section (1) of section 271, the amount of income in respect of which the penalty is imposed or imposable for the relevant assessment year, or, where such disclosure relates to more than one assessment year, the aggregate amount of such income for those years, exceeds a sum of five hundred thousand rupees, no order reducing or waiving the penalty under sub-section (1) shall be made by the Commissioner except with the previous approval of the Board. (3) Where an order has been made under sub-section (2) in favour of any person, whether such order relates to one or more assessment years, he shall not be entitled to any relief under this section in relation to any other assessment year at any time after the making of such order. (4) Without prejudice to the powers conferred on him by any other provision of this Act, the Commissioner may, on an application made in this behalf by an assessee, and after recording his reasons for so doing, reduce or waive the amount of any penalty payable by the assessee under this Act or stay or compound any proceeding for the recovery of any such amount, if he is satisfied that (i) to do otherwise would cause genuine hardship to the assessee, having regard to the circumstances of the case; and (ii) the assessee has co-operated in any enquiry relating to the assessment or any proceeding for the recovery of any amount due from him. (5) Every order made under this section shall be final and shall not be called into question by any court or any other authority. .