Section 44AA of the Income Tax Act, is deals with the Maintenance of accounts by certain persons carrying on profession or business.
In sub section 1 of section 44AA Board has specifically notified certain professions shall keep and maintain such books of account and other documents as may enable the Assessing Officer to compute his total income in accordance with the provisions of this Act.

Whereas sub section 2 of section 44AA says that every person carrying on business or profession [not being a profession referred to in sub-section (1)] shall, maintain books of accounts subject to the some of the following conditions:
a. If income from business or profession exceeds one lakh twenty thousand rupees (Rs.1,20,000/-) or total sales, turnover or gross receipts, as the case may be, in business or profession exceed or exceeds ten lakh rupees (Rs.10,00,000/-) in any one of the three years immediately preceding the previous year, then maintenance of books of Accounts is mandatory.

Or

b. If business or profession is newly set up in any previous year, and if income from business or profession is likely to exceed one lakh twenty thousand rupees (Rs.1,20,000/-) or total sales, turnover or gross receipts, as the case may be, in business or profession are or is likely to exceed ten lakh rupees (Rs.,10,00,000/-) during such previous year then maintenance of books of Accounts is mandatory.

Or

c. If the profits and gains from the business are deemed to be the profits and gains of the assessee u/s. 44AE or 44BB or 44BBB, as the case may be, and the assessee has claimed his income to be lower than the profits or gains so deemed to be the profits and gains of his business, as the case may be, during such previous year then maintenance of books of Accounts is mandatory.

Or

d. The provisions of sub-section (4) of s.44AD are applicable in case and income exceeds the maximum amount which is not chargeable to income-tax in any previous year then maintenance of books of Accounts is mandatory.

e. Further, in case a person being an individual or a Hindu undivided family, then Two Lakh Fifty thousand rupees (Rs.2,50,000/-) or total sales, turnover or gross receipts, as the case may be, in business or profession are or is likely to exceed Twenty Five Lakh rupees (Rs.25,00,000/-) during such previous year then maintenance of books of Accounts is mandatory.

If the Profession is not specified as per section 44AA (2) of the Income Tax Act, then according to the prescribed monetary limits specified in the provisions has to be followed for maintenance of books of accounts.

It is duty of assessee to maintain books of account as per provisions of section 44AA, if income exceeds prescribed limit, and assessee failed to do so, then the Assessing officer may levying penalty for the same under section 271A for non-maintaining or retaining books of accounts, documents etc.

In ITO v. Dinesh Paper Mart (1999) 70 ITD 274 ( Nag ) ( Trib) the Tribunal held that since rule 6F provides only for maintenance and retention of books of account by person carrying on a specified profession, assessee who was carrying on business other than specified profession, could not be penalised under section 271A for not retaining books of account

It may be noted that it may be desirable to maintain the books of account and other documents for enabling the Assessing Officer to compute the total income .

S. 2 (12A) defines , books of account – “books or books of account” includes ledgers, day-books, cash books, account-books and other books, whether kept in the written form or as print-outs of data stored in a floppy, disc, tape or any other form of electro-magnetic data storage device;

S. 2 (22AA) defines , document – S. 2 (22AA) “document” includes an electronic record as defined in clause (t) of sub-section (1) of section 2 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 (21 of 2000);