December 2022
Offence and prosecution – Failure to furnish return of income – delay of 72 days in filing of return as requisite documents were not supplied to him despite being demanded – no whisper of evasion of income-tax – cognizance taken by Trial Court for offence of tax evasion u/s 276CC was ex facie erroneous.
By Ajay R. Singh, Advocate
17. Ashish Agarwal vs. Income-tax Department
[2022] 143 taxmann.com 322 (Rajasthan)
Date of order: 4th August, 2022
Sections: 276CC, r.w.s. 279 of the ITA, 1961
Offence and prosecution – Failure to furnish return of income - delay of 72 days in filing of return as requisite documents were not supplied to him despite being demanded - no whisper of evasion of income-tax - cognizance taken by Trial Court for offence of tax evasion u/s 276CC was ex facie erroneous.The petitioner was an assessee under the Income-tax Act, 1961. A search and seizure was conducted at the petitioner’s business and residential premises on 24th February, 2016, in furtherance whereof, a notice u/s 153-A of the Act, requiring him to file return of income-tax within 30 days came to be issued.
It is the case of the petitioner that on receipt of the notice, he had sent a letter dated 28th July, 2016 and requested the Dy. Commissioner, Income-tax to provide copies of the statements recorded during the course of the search and other relevant documents so that a return as demanded u/s 153-A can be filed. Later on, the petitioner filed the return of income.
The Commissioner, Income-tax (Central), thereafter issued a show cause notice (SCN) dated 28th February, 2019 u/s 279(1) and asked him why not prosecution u/s 276-CC of the Act, for failure to file return of Income-tax in time be launched against him.
In response to the SCN, the peti
