PURSHOTAM TRADING CO Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is the second round of litigation by the petitioners in the matter of levy of interest on account of non-payment of tax in accordance with the provisions of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 (for short, "the Act").

(2.) The petitioners are engaged in the business of rice shelling. During the years 1992-93 and 1993-94, they supplied levy rice to the authorities of Food and Supplies Department, Haryana Government and Food Corporation of India as per the requirement of the Haryana Rice Procurement Levy Order, 1985. However, they did not deposit the tax payable under the Act along with returns. Therefore, the assessing authority levied interest under the provisions of the Act. The plea of the petitioners for waiver of interest in terms of the policy contained in Haryana Government's letter dated September 22, 1989 was turned down by the assessing authority. They challenged the levy of interest by filing revision petitions which were dismissed by Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner, Karnal. C.W.P. No. 18243 of 2002 filed by them was disposed of by a Division Bench of this Court on November 16, 2002, (Purushotam Trading Co. v. State of Haryana (2003) 21 P&H Taxes 57) with the direction that representations dated January 23, 2001 and January 25, 2001 made by the petitioners be decided by the State Government within a period of three months.

(3.) In compliance of the direction given by the Court, Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary to Government, Haryana, Excise and Taxation Department (hereinafter described "the competent authority") passed order dated January 7, 2003 (annexure P.7) declining the petitioners' prayer for waiver of interest by recording the following observations :