TVL SABCOL CONCEPTS, REPRESENTED BY ITS PROPRIETOR Vs. COMMERCIAL TAX OFFICER (VELLORE RURAL), OFFICE OF COMMERCIAL TAX OFFICER (VELLORE RURAL), VELLORE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Mr.N.Muralikumaran for M/s.McGan Law Firm, appearing for the petitioner and Mr.K.Venkatesh, learned Government Advocate for the respondent.

(2.) The petitioner, who is a registered dealer on the file of the respondent under the provisions of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 ("CST Act" in short), is aggrieved by a notice issued by the respondent invoking the powers conferred under Section 55 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act ("TNGST Act" in short), on the ground that the order of assessment passed by the assessing officer dated 31.03.2004 is without jurisdiction, as the original order of assessment dated 31.10.2002 which was appealed against, is merged with the order passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner dated 25.11.2003 by which the Appellate Assistant Commissioner partly allowed the appeal and remanded the assessment back to the Assessing Officer for giving credit to the 'C' Form declarations produced by the petitioner, and partly affirming the turnover and the tax levied as 'C' Form declarations were not produced for the said turnover. Therefore, the respondent, by the impugned notice, proposed to state that the revision of assessment made by the assessing officer by accepting the 'C' Forms for the remaining turnover after the order passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner dated 25.11.2003 suffers from error apparent on the face of the record and therefore, he is entitled to revise the same invoking his powers under Section 55 of the TNGST Act.

(3.) The Hon'ble Full Bench of this Court in the case of State of Tamil Nadu v. Arulmurugan and Company, 1982 51 STC 381, considered the scope and powers of the appellate authority as well as the assessing authority with regard to acceptance of 'C' Forms and whether it could be done at the appellate stage. After elaborately considering the scope and purport of Section 8(4) of the CST Act, it was pointed out that where the assessing authority is satisfied in a given case about the existence of sufficient cause to allow further time for 'C' form to be filed, it must necessarily be followed up by appropriate action such as reopening the assessment already completed. The implementation, in appropriate cases, of the power to allow further time cannot be withheld on the excuse that there is no express provision either in the statute or in the statutory rules for reopening the assessment. When the power is there and the facts are there demanding its exercise, the implementation must be done as a matter of course, on the doctrine of implied or ancillary powers.