Kohinoor Educational Services Pvt. Ltd. v. Union Of India & ORS.
$~11 * IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI + W.P.(C) 15188/2024, CM APPL. 63612/2024 KOHINOOR EDUCATIONAL SERVICES PVT. LTD. .....Petitioner Through:
Mr. Jojo Jose, Advocate.
versus UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
.....Respondents Through:
Mr. Ruchesh Sinha and Ms. Monalisa Maity, Advocates for R-2, 3.
Ms. Ira Singh, SPC with Ms. Pinky Pawar and Mr. Aryan Dhaka, Advocates for R-1.
Mr. Abhishek Maratha, SSC with Mr. Parth Semwal, Mr. Apoorv Agarwal, Ms. Nupur Sharma, Mr. Gaurav Singh, Mr. Bhanukaranm Singh Jodha, Ms. Muskaan Goel and Mr. Himanshu Haur, Advocates for R-4, 5.
CORAM:
HON'BLE MR. JUSTICE SANJEEV NARULA
O R D E R
% 28.11.2024 1.
The present writ petition seeks a mandamus directing Respondent No. 2, Executive Director (Finance) Airports Authority of India to issue Accountant Certificate (Annexure-A to the Form 26A of the Income Tax W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 1 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.
Act, 19611). This certificate pertains to payments allegedly made by the Petitioner including Royalty, Rent, and other amounts as per the License Agreement dated 3rd April 2009 to Respondent No. 3- Airports Authority of India,2 granting the Petitioner the use of the Salem Airport for a period of five years, from 3rd April 2009 to 2nd April 2015. 2.
The Petitioner has approached this Court seeking relief nearly a decade after the termination of the License Agreement, making the claim patently barred by delay and laches. Nonetheless, on 28th October, 2024, the counsel for Respondents No.2 and 3 had sought time to take instructions. Today, he apprised the Court of a communication from their tax department, highlighting significant challenges in complying with the Petitioner's request. It has been categorically stated that physical records for the period prior to 1st April 2013 are unavailable, having been destroyed during the 2015 floods. Without these records, AAI cannot verify whether the income corresponding to the Petitioner's payments was included in its computation of taxable income, a precondition for issuing the certificate in Form 26A under the Income Tax Act. The said communication reads as under: 1 "IT Act"
2 "AAI"
W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 2 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.
W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 3 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.
W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 4 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.
3.
Moreover, the Respondents have apprised the Court that the first proviso to Section 201 of the Income Tax Act, governing the issuance of such certificates, became effective only on 1st July 2012. Consequently, the financial years 2009-10 to 2012-13, which constitute the crux of the Petitioner's grievance, are not covered by the said provision. Thus, even on merits, the relief sought for that period is unsustainable. 4.
In light of the above, considering the fact that the relevant records have been destroyed and statutory provision is inapplicable for a significant W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 5 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.
portion of the claim, any direction to issue the certificate would be practically unenforceable. That Apart, the court cannot ignore the substantial delay in approaching the Court. Petitioner's reliefs are barred by delay and laches and therefore, the Court is not inclined to entertain the present petition.
5.
Dismissed along with pending application(s).
SANJEEV NARULA, J NOVEMBER 28, 2024 nk W.P.(C) 15188/2024 Page 6 of 6 The authenticity of the order can be re-verified from Delhi High Court Order Portal by scanning the QR code shown above.