9911796707
TMI Blog1982 (2) TMI 55X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... raput. Under the provisions of s. 14(1) of the Act, returns should have been filed on or before September 30, 1967, September 30, 1968 and September 30, 1969, for the corresponding assessment years 1967-68, 1968-69 and 1969-70, respectively. When the assessee did not file returns the WTO served notices under s. 17 of the Act in July, 1972, for the three years under consideration. Returns became due in August, 1972, but the assessee actually filed the returns for all the three years on September 13, 1972. The WTO was of the opinion that the assessee had committed default and started proceedings for penalising him under s, 18(1) of the Act. When notices were issued, the assessee took the stand that he had lost his mental balance and was under ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... id not dispute the plea of illness, but found that the power-of-attorney-holder and the employees were negligent in fulfilling the statutory requirements and the consequences of their negligence bad to be suffered by the assessee. He concluded that the assessee was liable to penalty but reduced the quantum to the basic minimum in terms of the law as it stood at the relevant time. As a result of the appellate Order for the first two years the penalty amounts stood at Rs. 7,63,000 and Rs. 6,51,263 respectively. There was no reduction in the last year's penalty amount. In second appeals by the assessee, the stand taken before the WTO and the appellate authority was reiterated. It was emphatically contended that the assessee being ill, his wi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... al finding that the assessee was prevented by sufficient cause from filing his returns within the prescribed time limit. It further found that the assessee was entitled to refunds after adjustment of wealth-tax liability for the three years under consideration and, therefore, there could be no motive for avoiding payment of tax by delaying, the filing of returns. It accepted the position that the assessee did not know that there was default in the filing of the returns until the notice came. For similar defaults under the I.T. Act, no penalty had been levied and the assessee's stand was apparently accepted. The fact that all the three returns were simultaneously filed soon after the notices under s. 17 of the Act, were issued, led the Tribu ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o of the Patna decision for wiping out the penalty. The real question for consideration is whether there was sufficient cause for the delay in furnishing the returns for the three years. As was pointed out by the judicial Committee of the Privy Council in the case of CIT v. Laxminarain Badridas [1937] 5 ITR 170, at p. 179 : " If the assessment in this case was made by the officer to the best of his judgment, it must stand unless the assessee succeeded in satisfying the officer that he had not a reasonable opportunity to comply or was prevented by sufficient cause from complying with the terms of the notice under s. 22(4) requiring him to produce or cause to be produced his accounts for three years, This he failed to do, and upon the und ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t of a quasi-criminal proceeding, and penalty will not ordinarily be imposed unless the party obliged either acted deliberately in defiance of law or was guilty of conduct contumacious or dishonest, or acted in conscious disregard of its obligation. " The Tribunal exercising appellate jurisdiction was entitled to consider whether circumstances existed which warranted levy of penalty and on the basis of facts placed before it, it has come to the factual conclusion that the situation was such that visiting the assessee with penalty was not warranted. We do not think, out of such a situation question of law can be carved out. We accordingly hold that the finding of the Tribunal was concluded by fact and no question of law emerges out of th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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