CBDT-Committee to study appellate orders, filing appeals before ITAT

CBDT- Formation of Committee to study appellate orders before CIT(A), filing appeals before ITAT

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F No 279/Misc./M-84/2014-(ITJ)
Government of lndia
Ministry of Finance
Department of Revenue
Central Board of Direct Taxes

New Delhi the I7'h July, 2014

Office Memorandum

Subject: Committee to study the appellate orders toexamine the filing of appeals bythe Department before various forums-reg-

It has been decided to constitute a Committee to appraise the efficacy of existing dispute resolution forums of CsIT(A) & ITAT and to suggest steps to reduce litigation before these forums. The composition of the Committee is as follows:

Sl No.	Name	Designation
1	Ms Rani S Nair	CIT-II, Ahmedabad	Chairperson
2	Ms Uma Singh	CIT (Jj, Mumbai	Members
3	Sh Rakesh Goyal	CIT-XXI, Kolkata
4	Sh D KMishra	CIT (J), Delhi
5	Sh Rajib Hota	CIT (TDS), Chennai
6	Sh D S Kalyan	CIT(I T AT)-V, Ahmedabad

1.2 The Chair person may appoint an officer as Member Secretary. The Committee may co-opt other members as it deems fit to have proper representation, co-ordination and feedback from ITAT at non- metro stations.

2. The Committee shall submit its report within 8 weeks from the date of its constitution.

3. The terms of reference of the committee will be as follows:

(i) To carry out detailed analysis of appellate orders and assessment orders, on various aspects as suggested in Para 7 and recommend steps to reduce litigation before the CIT (A).

(ii) To study the efficacy of existing system of filing appeals to the ITAT by the Department and suggest steps to reduce litigation before the I T AT after analyzing various aspects as mentioned in Para 7.

4. The Committee should examine the assessment orders, appellate orders ands crutiny report for the appeal to the I T AT related to orders selected as per guidelines mentioned in Para 5 below and give its recommendations for different income groups as defined in Para 6 separately for corporate and non- corporate assessees

5. Guidelines to select orders:

(i) Sample should be drawn from the orders passed by the ITAT during the month of June, September, December and March of the FY 2013-14

(ii) (a) Approximately 200 orders should be selected for study from each of the following 8 major cities: Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata. Chennai, Hyderabad, Pune, Alunedabad and Bangalore.

(ii) (b) Approximately 150 orders should be selected for study from each of the following stations: Chandigarh, Jaipur, Indore, Lucknow and Kochi

(iii) As far as possible, orders in cases of corporate and non-corporate assessees should be selected in equal numbers, particularly in Metro charges whereas in non-metro, sample of non-corporate assessees may be larger. It must also be ensured that some orders in search cases are in select basket.

(iv) As number of appeals filed by the Department before ITAT is much larger than appeals filed by the assessee, the order in appeals filed by the Department and by the assessee may be selected in the ratio of 2: 1 .

6. Analysis should be done and conclusions be drawn separately by categorising assessment orders in various income groups (returned income) as under:
<25 Lakh
25 Lakh to 1 Crore
1 Crore to 1 0 Crore
10 Crore and above

7.   Within the overall terms of reference, an analysis on the following aspects should be conducted, along with any other that the Committee deems fit
(i)      Assessment Orders: Nature of additions made in general, guidance of supervisory authorities, sustainability of additions in appeal, quality of addition made and average tax effect of additions made i n each category at Para 6 above.
(ii)     Orders of CIT (A}: Whether relief allowed is based on proper marshalling of facts and legal position. Tbe decisions are also to be analysed in the light of the order of the I T AT.
(iii)     (a) Authorization by CIT: The filing of second appeal is to be examined as to whether the same is filed mechanically by applying the monetary limits or on sound grounds after examining the merits of each order.
(iii)    (b)The Committee should ascertain from the orders of each CIT (A} received during the FY 20 13-14 by each administrative CIT under the jurisdiction of CCIT-I & CCIT-VIII Delhi, CCIT-I Ahmedabad, CCIT-II Hyderabad the percentage of appeals filed by the Department in I TAT where the tax effect exceeds monetary limits.
(iv)    The success rate of appeals filed by the Department I Assessee before the ITAT to be analysed.
(v)     The Committee must also take inputs on relevant issues from DRs in the stations mentioned in Para 5.
8.The Headquarters of the Committee will be in Delhi.

PriyankaSingh
OSD
ITJ CBDT