Income Tax Returns - Due Date - P&H High Court directs extension
THIS government is unfortunately made to do things which it normally should have done at the first instance, only after prolonged agitations and litigation. If the Government concedes to Public Demand at the beginning, a lot of tension, litigation and bad publicity in India and abroad can be avoided. But the bureaucracy seems to be bent on bringing disrepute to the Finance Minister and the Prime Minister.
There has been a strong demand, especially from chartered accountants for extending the due date for filing income tax returns of those who are mandatorily required to get their accounts audited. Writ petitions were filed, not with much success in several High Courts. But yesterday they tasted success in the Punjab & Haryana High Court.
The only question for consideration before the High Court in this case was whether keeping in view the facts and circumstances of the case and the genuine hardship of the assessees, the date for filing of returns for the assessment year 2015-16 for certain categories of assesses including companies, firms etc. whose accounts are required to be audited in terms of Section 44AB of the Act, is to be extended beyond 30.9.2015.
And the High Court held:
Taking the totality of facts and circumstances of the case, it is considered appropriate to extend the due date for e-filing of returns upto 31st October 2015 for which the CBDT shall issue appropriate notification/instructions under Section 119 of the Act. Direction is also issued to the respondents to ensure that the forms etc. which are to be prescribed for the audit report and for e-filing the returns should ordinarily be made available on the first day of April of the assessment year .
Hopefully the Board will issue the directions today and not waste the Nation's money and time by approaching the Supreme Court.
Please see VISHAL GARG Vs UoI