Non Receipt of ack not the fault of assessee

When an assessee files income-tax return over the Internet and follows it up by posting a hard copy of ITR-5 as required, his return cannot be deemed to have never been filed, held the Bombay High Court. Instead, it must be considered to be defective, and the assessee must be given 15 days to set right the deficiency.

In Crawford Bayley and Co., the burden of song of the assessee was it was not its fault that the hard copy was not received, especially given that the department insisted on it being sent by ordinary post. Only recently, it has relented and allowed dispatch through speed post as well. The law requires the hard copy (ITR-5) containing the brief and relevant particulars of the return filed electronically to be sent to its Bangalore electronic processing centre within 120 days, which the assessee in this case had done.

The Bombay High Court came to the conclusion that non-receipt of the hard copy could at best be viewed as rendering the return defective and not non est. Incidentally, the law mandates the assessing officer to give 15 days to the assessee.