Does every procedural lapse under the Income-tax Act deserve a penalty? Not quite. In a notable judgment, the Chhattisgarh High Court held that Section 273B offers a crucial safeguard—reasonable cause can shield genuine transactions from automatic penalty under Section 271E. The Court set aside a penalty where the cash repayment of a loan was made under the financier’s insistence, affirming that law must balance compliance with fairness.
