B.P. Jeevan Reddy, CJ.

1. This writ petition is directed against an order passed by the Commissioner of Income-tax, Meerut, under Section 12A of the Income-tax Act, 1961, on March 13, 1900. The petitioner claims to be a charitable society. It applied for registration under Section 12A of the Act. Section 12A reads as follows :

"12A. The provisions of Section 11 and Section 12 shall not apply in relation to the income of any trust or institution unless the following conditions are fulfilled, namely :--

(a) the person in receipt of the income has made an application for registration of the trust or institution in the prescribed form and in the prescribed manner to the Chief Commissioner or Commissioner before the 1st day of July 1973, or before the expiry of a period of one year from the date of the creation of the trust or the establishment of the institution, whichever is later :

Provided that the Chief Commissioner or Commissioner may, in his discretion, admit an application for the registration of any trust or institution after the expiry of the period aforesaid ;

(b) where the total income of the trust or institution as computed under this Act without giving effect to the provisions of Section 11 and Section 12 exceeds twenty-five thousand rupees in any previous year, the accounts of the trust or institution for that year have been audited by an accountant as defined in the Explanation below Sub-section (2) of Section 288 and the person in receipt of the income furnishes along with the return of income for the relevant assessment year the report of such audit in the prescribed form duly signed and verified by such accountant and setting forth such particulars as may be prescribed."

2. A reading of the section shows that the registration under Section 12A is a pre-condition for availing of the benefit under Sections 11 and 12. Section 11 provides for exemption of income which is applied for charitable purposes. Section 12 is in the nature of an explanation to Section 11. Before a person can claim the benefit of Section 11, or Section 12, as the case may be, he must obtain registration under Section 12A. The application for registration under Section 12A has to be made in Form No. 10A prescribed by Rule 17A before the expiry of one year from the date of creation of the trust or the establishment of the institution, whichever is later. It has to be made by the person in receipt of the income of the trust.

It is evident that, at this stage, the Commissioner is not to examine the application of income. All that he may examine is whether the application is made in accordance with the requirements of Section 12A read with Rule 17A and whether Form No. 10A has been properly filled up. He may also see whether the objects of the trust are charitable or not. At this stage, it is not proper to examine the application of income.

3. The order impugned does not say that the objects of the society are not charitable in nature ; it merely says that they are general in nature. Just because they are general, they do not cease to be charitable. The Commissioner has also observed that no activity has been carried on by the society. It is also not the requirement of Section 12A of the Act. Nor has Section 80G any relevance at this stage. The impugned order cannot, therefore, be sustained and it is quashed.

4. The Commissioner shall re-examine the issue in the light of the objects of the society and in the light of the observations made herein and pass fresh orders accordingly.

The writ petition is disposed of with these observations.