URGENT Penalty u/s 271F

AO can issue notice and assessee has to furnish a written explanation. No penalty can be imposed without reasonable cause. It is a fact that there has been an inordinate delay in issuing the notice. If the motive lurking behind the notice is to realize penalty from an honest taxpayer, it would be highly unjustified. The assessee has paid tax by way of tds and she was not aware of the penal provision. Ignorance of law is definitely a reason though it is not an excuse. Where there is no revenue loss on failure to file return, penalty should be excused. It should be treated as a technical breach for which penalty would be unjustified. Generally penalty proceeding is dropped after an explanation is furnished.