IN INCOME TAX APPELLATE TRIBUNAL CUTTACK BENCH, CUTTACK BEFORE SHRI CHANDRA MOHAN GARG, JM AND SHRI L.P. SAHU, AM ITA No.301/CTK/2018 (Assessment Year 2014-2015) ACIT, Circle-2(1), Cuttack Vs. M/s Krishna Coke (India) Pvt. Ltd. Professor Para, Cuttack-753003 PAN/GIR No.AACCK 3728 N (Appellant) (Respondent) Revenue by Shri Subhendu Dutta, DR Assessee by None Date of Hearing 20/08/2019 Date of Pronouncement 20/08/2019 ORDER Per Bench This appeal is filed by Revenue against order passed by learned CIT(A), Cuttack, dated 15.05.2018 for assessment year 2014- 2015. 2. In order to dispose of appeals which are below tax limit of Rs.50 lacs, list of such cases which fall within threshold limits prescribed by CBDT Circular No.17/2019 dated 8th August, 2019 are pasted in Notice Board to ensure earliest possible compliance. 3. None appeared on behalf of assessee even case was called for hearing on second round. Therefore, bench decided to dispose off 2 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 appeal of assessee after considering submissions of ld. DR and material evidence available on record. 4. We find that in present appeals filed by Revenue, tax effect is less than Rs.50 lakhs and, therefore, in view of CBDT Circular No.17/2019 dated 8th August, 2019, appeals of revenue are not maintainable. 5. Ld. DR also fairly conceded that no doubt tax effect involved in appeal is less than Rs.50 lakhs, thus, bound by Departmental Instruction, however, ld. DR drew our attention to para 10 of Circular No.3/2018, dated 11th July, 2018, which has been modified by Circular dated 20th August, 2018 and in terms of said modification, Departmental Representatives made prayer that permission to pray for recall of order may be granted in case any of conditions in reports made available by AO subsequently show that issues were required to be contested. modified para is extracted hereunder: 10. Adverse judgments relating to following issues should be contested on merits notwithstanding that tax effect entailed is less than monetary limits specified in para 3 above or there is no tax effect: (a) Where Constitutional validity of provisions of Act or Rule is under challenge, or (b) Where Board's order, Notification, Instruction or Circular has been held to be illegal or ultra vires, or (c) Where Revenue Audit objection in case has been accepted by Department, or (d) Where addition relates to undisclosed foreign income/undisclosed foreign assets (including financial assets)/ undisclosed foreign bank account. (e) Where addition is based on information received from external sources in nature of law enforcement agencies such as CBI/ED/DRI/SFIO/ Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI). 3 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 (f) Cases where prosecution has been filed by Department and is pending in Court. 6. Earlier in Circular No.3/2018, dated 11th July, 2018, it has been decided by CBDT that departmental appeals may be filed on merits before Income Tax Appellate Tribunal and High Courts and SLPs/appeals before Supreme Court keeping in view monetary limits and conditions specified below. Henceforth, appeals/SLPs shall not be filed in cases where tax effect does not exceed monetary limits given hereunder: Appeals/SLPs in Income-tax Monetary Limit S. No. matters (Rs.) 1. Before Appellate Tribunal 20,00,000 2. Before High Court 50,00,000 3. Before Supreme Court 1,00,00,000 7. Further, CBDT amended above Circular vide Circular No.17/2019, dated 8th August, 2019, whereby enhancing monetary limits for filing of appeals by Department before Income Tax Appellate Tribunals, High Courts and SLPs/appeals before Supreme Court as under :- S. Appeals/SLPs in Income-tax Monetary Limit No. matters (Rs.) 1. Before Appellate Tribunal 50,00,000 2. Before High Court 1,00,00,000 3. Before Supreme Court 2,00,00,000 8. Going by prescription of amended Circular No. 17/2019, dated 8th August, 2019, we are of view that Revenue should have either not filed instant appeal before Tribunal or withdrawn same as tax effect in appeal is admittedly less than prescribed limit, i.e., 4 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 Rs. 50,00,000/- for not filing appeal, which is not maintainable as per provisions of Section 268A of Income Tax Act, 1961. 9. coordinate bench of Tribunal in ITA No.1398/Ahd/2004, order dated 14.08.2009 has dismissed appeals filed by Revenue below monetary limit of Rs.50,00,000/- as prescribed by CBDT vide Circular No.17/2019, dated 8th August, 2019. relevant observations of Tribunal are as under :- 5. Having considered rival submissions and having perused material on record, we do not have slightest of hesitation in holding that concession extended by CBDT not only applies to appeals to be filed in future but it is also equally applicable to appeals pending for disposal as on now. Our line of reasoning is this. circular dated 8thAugust 2019 is not standalone circular. It is to be read in conjunction with CBDT circular no 3 of 2018 (and subsequent amendment thereto), and all it does is to replace paragraph nos. 3 and 5 of said circular. This is evident from following extracts from circular dated 8thAugust2019: 2. As step towards further management of litigation. it has been decided by Board that monetary limits for filing of appeals in income-tax cases be enhanced further through amendment in Para 3 of Circular mentioned above and accordingly. table for monetary limits specified in Para3 of Circular shall read as follows: S.No. Appeals/SLPs in Income-tax matters Monetary Limit (Rs.) 1. Before Appellate Tribunal 50,00,000 2. Before High Court 1,00,00,000 3. Before Supreme Court 2,00,00,000 3. Further, with view to provide parity in filing of appeals in scenarios where separate order is passed by higher appellate authorities for each assessment year vis-a-vis where composite order for more than one assessment years is passed. para5 of circular is substituted by following para: 5. Assessing Officer shall calculate tax effect separately for every assessment year in respect of disputed issues in case of every assessee. If in case of assessee, disputed 5 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 issues arise in more than one assessment year, appeal can be filed in respect of such assessment year or years in which tax effect in respect of disputedissuesexceedsthemonetarylimitspecifiedinp ara3.No appeal shall be filed in respect of assessment year or years in which tax effect is less than monetary limit specified in para 3. Further, even in case of composite order of any High Court or appellate authority which involves more than one assessment year and common issues in more than one assessment year no appeal shall be filed in respect of assessment year or years in which tax effect is less than monetary limit specified in para 3. In case where composite order/ judgement involves more than one assessee, each assessee shall be dealt with separately 4. said modifications shall come into effect from date of issue of this Circular. 6. Clearly, all other portions of circular no. 3 of 2018 (supra) have remained intact. portion which has remained intact includes paragraph 13 of aforesaid circular which is as follows: 13.This Circular will apply to SLPs/ appeals/ cross objections/references to be filed henceforth in SC/HCs/Tribunal and it shall also apply retrospectively to pending SLPs/ appeals/cross objections/references. Pending appeals below specified tax limits in pare 3 above may be withdrawn/ not pressed. 7. In view of above discussions, we hereby hold that relaxation in monetary limits for departmental appeals, vide CBDT circular dated 8thAugust 2019(supra) shall be applicable to pending appeals in addition to appeals to be filed henceforth. 8. Learned Commissioner (DR) then submits liberty may kindly be given to point out, upon necessary further verifications, and to seek recall dismissal of appeals and restoration of appeals in cases (i) in which it can be demonstrated that appeals are covered by exceptions, and (ii)which are inadvertently included in this bunch of appeals, wherein tax effect, in terms of CBDT circular (supra), exceeds Rs 50,00,000. None opposes this prayer; we accept same. We make it clear that appellants shall be at liberty to point out cases which are wrongly included in appeals so summarily dismissed, either owing to wrong computation of tax effect or owning to such 6 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 cases being covered by permissible exceptions- or for any other reason, and we will take appropriate remedial steps in thisregard. 9. In light of above discussions, all appeals stand dismissed as withdrawn. As appeals filed by Revenue are found to be non-maintainable and as all related cross-objections of assessee arise only as result of those appeals and merely support order of CIT(A), cross objections filed by assessee are also dismissed as infructuous. Ordered, accordingly. 10. Ld D.R. submitted that as per para 4 of CBDT Circular No.17/2019 dated 8th August, 2019, modifications shall come into effect from date of this issue of this Circular i.e. 8.8.2019. Therefore, it is not applicable to pending appeals. 11. After considering submission of ld D.R. and keeping in view order dated 14.8.2019 of ITAT Ahmedabad Bench in case of Dinesh Mudhavlal Patel (supra), we are of view that relaxation in monetary limit in departmental appeals vide circular dated 8th August, 2019 shall be applicable to pending appeals in addition to appeals to be filed henceforth. Thus, contention of ld D.R. is dismissed. 12. Accordingly, we dismiss appeal filed by Revenue without going into merits of case. However, it is made clear that Department is at liberty to file Miscellaneous Application, if tax effect is found to be more than prescribed limit of Rs.50,00,000/- as per amendment carried out by CBDT in Circular No.17/2019, dated 8th August, 2019, or any of conditions etc. as available in amended para 10 of Circular No.3/2018, dated 20th August, 2018. Accordingly, appeal of Revenue deserves to be dismissed. 7 ITA No.301/CTK/2014 13. In result, appeal of Revenue is dismissed. Order pronounced in open court on 20/08/2019. Sd/- Sd/- (C.M.GARG) (L.P.SAHU) JUDICIAL MEMBER ACCOUNTANT MEMBER Cuttack; Dated 20/08/2019 PKM, Sr.P.S. Copy of Order forwarded to 1. Appellant- . ACIT, Circle-2(1), Cuttack 2. Respondent- M/s Krishna Coke (India) Pvt. Ltd. Professor Para, Cuttack-753003 3. CIT(A), 4. CIT 5. DR, ITAT, Cuttack 6. Guard file. BY ORDER, (Senior Private Secretary) , ITAT, Cuttack ACIT, Circle-2(1), Cuttack v. Krishna Coke (India) Pvt. Ltd