DEVASHI ENTERPRISES Vs. JOINT COMMISSIONER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner seeks a writ of prohibition against the Commercial Tax Officer, Enforcement (North), from formulating any proposal for the purpose of assessment/re-assessment by the 3rd respondent Assessing Officer based on an alleged unauthorised audit conducted at the petitioners' business between 14.7.2015 to 19.9.2015.

(2.) According to the petitioner, the conduct of the aforesaid audit was illegal and contrary to the provisions of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act 2006.

(3.) The petitioner relies on the decision of a Division Bench of this Court in W. A. No. 1757 of 2019, dated 04. 06. 2019, wherein the Division Bench upholds the order of a learned Single Judge quashing the audit conducted by the Commercial Taxes Department on the ground that authorisation approval for the search dated 16. 05. 2014 was bad in law. Consequently, all orders based on such approval are also bad in law, and liable to be set aside. At this juncture, Mr. Mohd. Shaffiq, learned Special Government Pleader brings to the notice of this Court that an application has been filed seeking review of the order passed by the Division Bench dated 4.6.2019 and the same is pending disposal. However, I need hardly go into that question for the reason that both the learned counsel, Mr. Prithvi Chopda, for the petitioner as well as Mr. Mr. Mohd. Shaffiq, learned Special Government Pleader for the respondents, appear to concur upon the position that the powers of the Assessing Authority in framing assessment based on materials found in the course of inspection/audit, even assuming the same had been held to be invalid/contrary to law, are unfettered.