Delhi tax tribunal orders Rs 5.31 lakh refund despite missing original return
The Delhi Income Tax Appellate Tribunal ruled that a Jorbagh taxpayer is entitled to a Rs 5,31,680 refund, overturning the department’s refusal based on the absence of an original ITR filed under Section 139.
A taxpayer from Jorbagh in New Delhi missed the deadline to file his original income-tax return for assessment year 2019-20, prompting a Section 148 notice on March 27, 2023 after the department’s Insight Portal flagged high-value transactions. He subsequently filed a reassessment return reporting a Rs 1.38 crore business loss and seeking a Rs 5.31 lakh TDS refund. The assessing officer denied the refund, arguing that Section 148 filings cannot generate a fresh refund claim, a view upheld by the Commissioner of Appeals referencing the Bombay High Court and Supreme Court precedents.
Challenging the ruling, the taxpayer appeared before the Delhi ITAT, where members S. Rifaur Rahman and Raj Kumar Chauhan ruled in his favor, ordering a refund of Rs 5,31,680 plus statutory interest. The tribunal reasoned that Section 237 guarantees a refund when tax paid exceeds liability, and that no law bars refunds from reassessment returns, citing Allahabad and Rajasthan High Court decisions. It also warned that retaining excess tax would conflict with Article 265 of the Constitution.
Why it matters
The ruling clarifies that taxpayers can claim refunds from reassessment returns even without a prior original filing.
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