Tds on bank deposit in the name of flat owners association

We have deposited corpus fund of our flat owners Association with a bank as Fixed Deposit. Annual interst on this wiill be around Rs, 50000. The Association does not have any other income. Can the Association submit Form 15G so that no tax is deduted at source? Bank wants to have a certificate from the Income Tax Department to exempt TDS and they say that they will not accept 15G. Our plea that ours is not a Trust but only an Association does not convince them. The narration under 15G states that it can be given 'by an individual or a person (not being a company or firm). When ours is not a company or firm, why 15G cannot be given? Our Association is regisered and we have PAN also, but so far not filed any return, as other than members contribution, there is no income. Request someone to guide us.

Section 197A(1A)

(1A) Notwithstanding anything contained in section 192A or section 193 or section or section 194DA or section 194K, no deduction of tax shall be made under any of the said sections in the case of a person (not being a company or a firm), if such person furnishes to the person responsible for paying any income of the nature referred to in section 192A or section 193 or section 194A or section 194DA or section 194K, as the case may be, a declaration in writing in duplicate in the prescribed form and verified in the prescribed manner to the effect that the tax on his estimated total income of the previous year in which such income is to be included in computing his total income will be nil.

For the purposes of above mentioned five sections of rule 29C(1) applies only to a person (not being a company or a firm), who can furnish such declaration in Form No. 15G. Here “person” means as defined u/s 2(31) of the Act. Therefore, barring a company {as defined in section 2(17)} and a firm {including LLP as defined in section 2(23)(i)}, following persons are eligible to furnish a declaration in Form No. 15G u/s 197A(1A):

 an individual

 a HUF

 an Association of persons or a body of individuals, whether incorporated or not,

 a local authority, and

 every artificial juridical person, not falling within any of the preceding sub-clauses.

For detailed explanation refer: Update-on-IT-Rule-29C-1.10.2015.