Section Text
In section 139 of the Income-tax Act, -
(a) in clause (a) of sub-section (1), for the words "six months", the words "four months" shall be substituted;
(b) for the proviso to sub-section (2), the following proviso shall be substituted, namely :-
"Provided that, on an application made in the prescribed manner, the Income-tax Officer may, in his discretion, extend the date for furnishing the return, and, notwithstanding that the date is so extended, interest shall be chargeable in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (8).";
(c) for sub-section (4A), the following sub-section shall be substituted with effect from the 1st day of April, 1973, namely :-
"(4A) Every person in receipt of income derived from property held under trust or other legal obligation wholly for charitable or religious purposes or in part only for such purposes, or of income being voluntary contributions referred to in sub-clause (iia) of clause (24) of section 2, shall, if the total income in respect of which he is assessable as a representative assessee (the total income for this purposes being computed under this Act without giving effect to the provisions of sections 11 and 12) exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to income-tax, furnish a return of such income of the previous year in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner and setting forth such other particulars as may be prescribed and all the provisions of this Act shall, so far as may be, apply as if it were a return required to be furnished under sub-section (1).";
(d) in sub-section (8)(a), -
(i) for the portion beginning with the words, brackets and figure "Where the return under sub-section (1)" and ending with the words "waive the interest payable by any person under this sub-section.", the following shall be substituted, namely :-
Where the return under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2) or sub-section (4) for an assessment year is furnished after the specified date, or is not furnished, then [whether or not the Income-tax Officer has extended the date for furnishing the return under sub-section (1) or sub-section (2)], the assessee shall be liable to pay simple interest at 12 per cent. per annum, reckoned from the day immediately following the specified date to the furnishing of the return or, where no return has been furnished, the date of completion of the assessment under section 144, on the amount of the tax payable on the total income as determined on regular assessment, as reduced by the advance tax, if any, paid, and any tax deducted at source :
Provided that the Income-tax Officer may, in such cases and under such circumstances as may be prescribed, reduce or waive the interest payable by any assessee under this sub-section.
Explanation 1 : For the purposes of this sub-section, "specified date", in relation to a return for an assessment year, means, -
(a) in the case of every assessee whose total income, or the total income of any person in respect of which he is assessable under this Act, includes any income from business or profession, the date of the expiry of four months from the end of the previous year or where there is more than one previous year, from the end of the previous year which expired last before the commencement of the assessment year, or the 30th day of June of the assessment year, whichever is later;
(b) in the case of every other assessee, the 30th day of June of the assessment year.;
(ii) the existing Explanation shall be re-numbered as Explanation 2.