Law: Income Tax Ordinance, 2001

Section: 133(5), 131

SUMMARY;Reference Application: The Applicant has filed a Reference Application impugning an order dated January 12, 2024, passed by the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue Karachi. The application raises questions of law, including whether the appeals filed by the Applicant were barred by time under Section 131 of the Income Tax Ordinance, 2001.Court Observations:The court noted that the impugned order from the Tribunal contains identical language and facts as another order dated September 14, 2023, in a different case (ITA No. 377/KB/2023). This suggests a "cut and paste" approach by the Tribunal, which the court views as casual and negligent.The court previously set aside a similar order in another case (ITRA No. 400 of 2023) due to factual inaccuracies and lack of proper documentation regarding service of the order.The Tribunal was required to ascertain the true facts about the service of the order and decide the condonation application accordingly.Remand to Tribunal: The court has set aside the impugned order and remanded the matter to the Tribunal to decide the issue of limitation afresh. The Tribunal is directed to call for proper comments and supporting documents from the concerned Commissioner. If the condonation application is granted, the matter will also be decided on merits.Additional Directions: Copies of this order are to be issued to the Tribunal and other relevant authorities, including the Ministry of Law and Justice and the Inspecting Judge nominated for Inland Revenue Tribunal.Income Tax Ordinance, 2001 – Limitation & Role of Appellate Tribunal Inland RevenueORDER:Mr. Ameer Bakhsh Metlo, Advocate filed Vakalatnama on behalf of the Respondent-Department, which is take on record.Through this Reference Application, the Applicant has impugned order dated 12.1.2024 passed in ITAs Nos.3556 and 3557/KB/2023 by the Appellate Tribunal Inland Revenue Karachi proposing various questions of law including the following question, which is relevant for the present purposes:-Whether the appeals filed by Applicant before Respondent No. 3 were barred by time under Section 131 of the 2001 Ordinance?Heard counsel for the parties and perused the record. At the…