Writ Petition Challenging Delayed Intimation Dismissed for Laches; Assessee Directed to Pursue Tribunal Remedy

Writ Petition Challenging Delayed Intimation Dismissed for Laches; Assessee Directed to Pursue Tribunal Remedy

1. Whether a writ petition filed after a delay of more than 5 years against an order dismissing an appeal on grounds of delay is maintainable when an alternative statutory remedy of filing an appeal before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT) under Section 253 remains unavailed.
2. Whether the ITAT can consider an application for condonation of delay independently when the assessee chooses to pursue the alternative statutory remedy.

• An intimation under Section 143(1) was issued to the assessee on 11.11.2019 for Assessment Year 2018-19.
• The assessee did not initially challenge the Section 143(1) intimation before any judicial forum within the prescribed timeline.
• At a much belated stage, the assessee filed an appeal before the CIT(A), which was dismissed on the grounds of delay.
• Instead of filing an appeal before the ITAT under Section 253, the assessee filed a writ petition before the High Court after a gap of more than 5 years.
• The High Court dismissed the writ petition on account of inordinate delay, laches, and the availability of an efficacious alternative statutory remedy under Section 253.
• The assessee challenged the High Court’s dismissal by filing a Special Leave Petition (SLP) before the Supreme Court.

• Held in favour of the Revenue. The Supreme Court declined to entertain the SLP and dismissed it due to inordinate delay, laches, and the non-exhaustion of the statutory appellate remedy.
• Held in favour of the assessee (on procedural remedy). In the event the assessee files an appeal along with an application for condonation of delay before the ITAT, the Tribunal must examine and decide the condonation application on its own merits, without being influenced by any observations made in the High Court’s order.

• Writ Jurisdiction Barred by Delay and Alternative Remedy: Article 226/32 writ remedies cannot be used to bypass the statutory appellate framework under Section 253, especially when the petitioner is guilty of inordinate delay and laches.
• Exhaustion of Statutory Remedies: A taxpayer must exhaust statutory appellate routes (such as appealing to the ITAT) before approaching constitutional courts.
• Independent Examination of Condonation Application: Dismissal of a writ petition on grounds of laches does not preclude the statutory appellate authority (ITAT) from independently deciding a delay condonation application on its own merits.