2015 (11) TMI 494 - HC - Income Tax

Penalty u/s 271(1)(c) - wrong entry in account books due to non receipt of proper and complete documents by assessee firm and thereby booking under wrong heads by treating - Held that - The assessee is a contractor carrying on contracts of various government bodies. The assessee had short declared contract receipts from the civil work undertaken by it. Some part of the said amount was declared in the security amount by the assessee but not as part of the taxable receipts from PWD, Sirhind. Thus, the assessee had suppressed its contract receipts on which tax was also deducted at source by the said concern. The Assessing Officer, the CIT(A) and the Tribunal maintained levy of penalty under Section 271(1)(c) of the Act on that account. The Tribunal had correctly recorded that the assessee having under declared its receipt is exigible to levy of penalty under Section 271(1)(c) of the Act view of the concurrent findings of concealment of income - Decided against assessee.

Summary

Issues:
1. Justification of penalty under Section 271(1)(c) for wrong entry in account books due to non-receipt of proper documents.
2. Justification of penalty under Section 271(1)(c) for wrong entry in account books despite established legal principles.
3. Perversity of Tribunal's order.

Issue 1:
The appeal was filed against the penalty imposed under Section 271(1)(c) of the Income Tax Act, 1961 for wrong entries in account books due to non-receipt of proper documents. The assessee, a civil contractor firm, had suppressed contract receipts, leading to discrepancies in the income declared. The Assessing Officer found discrepancies in the TDS certificates and the actual receipts. The firm attributed the mistake to non-receipt of Form No.16-A. Despite adjustments made by the firm, penalty proceedings were initiated, and a penalty was imposed. The CIT(A) deleted the penalty on an estimate basis but confirmed the penalty related to suppressed receipts. The Tribunal dismissed both appeals, leading to the current appeal.

Issue 2:
The second issue revolved around the justification of the penalty under Section 271(1)(c) for wrong entries in account books, ignoring established legal principles. The assessee argued that there was no concealment of income and referred to judgments like Reliance Petro Products Pvt. Ltd. and Ms. Sania Mirza's cases. However, the Tribunal upheld the penalty, stating that the firm had under-declared its receipts, leading to the imposition of the penalty. The Tribunal's findings indicated that the firm was liable for penalty under Section 271(1)(c) for furnishing inaccurate particulars of income.

Issue 3:
Regarding the alleged perversity of the Tribunal's order, the High Court found no merit in the appeal. The Court noted that the firm had indeed suppressed its contract receipts, justifying the penalty imposed under Section 271(1)(c). Despite the legal principles cited by the appellant's counsel, the Court upheld the Tribunal's decision based on the concurrent findings of concealment of income by the Assessing Officer, CIT(A), and the Tribunal. Consequently, the Court dismissed the appeal, stating that no substantial question of law arose.

In conclusion, the High Court upheld the penalty imposed on the firm for wrong entries in account books and suppression of receipts, rejecting the appeal and finding no merit in challenging the Tribunal's decision.