Orissa High Court rules tax exemption cannot be denied for technical filing delays

The Orissa High Court has ruled that a technical delay in filing an audit report should not result in the denial of tax exemptions. In the case of Banirupa Charitable Trust, the court addressed a challenge against an order by the Commissioner of Income Tax that rejected an application for condonation of delay regarding Form 10B for the 2021-22 assessment year.

The petitioner had filed the audit report on March 5, 2022, 18 days after the prescribed deadline of February 15, 2022. The court noted that the delay occurred during the period of the Covid-19 pandemic and held that the benefit of exemption should not be denied solely due to a procedural delay, as the report could be produced before an Assessing Officer or Appellate Authority with sufficient cause.