Penalty proceedings u/s 271(1)(c) initiated against the Assessee cannot be levied against the Legal Heir

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Penalty proceedings u/s 271(1)(c) initiated against the Assessee cannot be levied against the Legal Heir

 

Hon’ble ITAT held that the Penalty so imposed is not maintainable against the legal heir of the Assessee.

 

The Pune ITAT observed d as under:

 

“We next note that there is hardly any need for us to delve deeper in the relevant factual matrix. Suffice to say, the assessee herein Shri Kadir Usman Shaikh appears to have expired well before the Assessing Officer’s penalty order dated 28.03.2014. That being the case, we quote CIT vs. S.Gouri [2019] 417 ITR 45(Madras) to hold that the impugned penalty imposed by the Assessing Officer is not maintainable against the assessee’s legal heir herein under section 159 of the Act. We therefore delete the impugned penalty for this precise reason alone. All other pleadings on merits stand rendered academic”

 

The present judgment of Hon’ble ITAT delves into the provisions of section 159 of the Act. The crux of the judgment is that the penalty is not maintainable against the legal heir of the Assessee since the penalty proceedings were initiated against the Assessee and were also completed against the Assessee; however, the Assessee died before the levy of penalty.

The order is as under:

 

Penalty proceedings u/s 271(1)(c) initiated against the Assessee cannot be levied against the Legal Heir

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