CEMENT LTD. Vs. STATE OF U.P.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) By means of the present petition, the petitioner has challenged the assessment order framed by the Assessing Authority under the provisions of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, as being barred by time.

(2.) The petitioner, a public limited company, has its factories at various places and is engaged in the manufacture of cement. It has regional office in the State of U.P. at Ghaziabad. The State of U.P. enacted a legislation known as U.P. Tax on Entry of Goods Act, 2000 levying tax on entry of goods into the local area from outside the local area. The petitioner had filed a writ petition challenging the constitutional validity of the said legislation.

(3.) A Division Bench of this Court in Indian Oil Corporation and others Vs. State of U.P. and others, 2012 48 NTN 1 has upheld the constitutional validity of the said legislation. Suffice it to say that the present petitioner had also filed a writ petition no.154 of 2007 which was dismissed on 23rd of December, 2011. Thereafter, an application to recall the said order and to restore the writ petition was filed which was dismissed on 6th of April, 2012. It may also be placed on record that admittedly, the petitioner had obtained a stay order in the aforesaid writ petition no.154 of 2007. After the dismissal of the restoration application, notice for assessment was given. In reply thereof, besides the other things, the petitioner raised a point of limitation on the ground that the assessment proceedings are barred in view of section 21(6) of the U.P. Trade Tax Act. The petitioner did file another writ petition no.443 of 2013 before this Court seeking a direction directing the Assessing Officer to decide the question of limitation first. But it could not get the desired relief and the petition was disposed of with the observations that all the questions shall be decided simultaneously while framing the assessment order. Now, the impugned assessment order has been passed. Hence the present writ petition challenging the assessment order as barred by time has been filed.