BANWARI LAL PARSHOTAM DASS Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner is a firm and is a duly registered assessee under the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948, now the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 (hereinafter referred to as the State Act), as well as under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the Central Act ).

(2.) PROCEEDINGS of assessment for the year 1972-73 under the State Act were completed and a penalty was also imposed upon the petitioner under the State Act. The Assessing Authority also finalised the assessment case of the petitioner-firm for the year 1972-73 under the Central Act and a show cause notice for imposing penalty under Section 9 (2) of the Central Act, read with Section 10 (7) of the State Act, was issued to the petitioner. This notice is sought to be challenged in this writ petition mainly on the ground that the provisions of Section 9 of the Central Sales Tax (Amendment) Act, 1976. are ultra vires Article 20 (1) of the Constitution of India inasmuch as the said provision purported to impose the penalties relating to the offences with retrospective effect.

(3.) IT may be pointed out that their Lordships of the Supreme Court in Khemka and Co. (Agencies) Pvt. Ltd. v. State of Maharashtra [1975] 35 S. T. C. 571 (S. C.), held as under: There is no provision in the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, for imposition of penalty for delay or default in payment of tax and the provision in the State Sales Tax Act imposing penalty for non-payment of tax within the prescribed time is not attracted to impose penalty on dealers under the Central Act in respect of tax payable under the Central Act. Consequently, it is not permissible for the authorities to invoke the provisions of Section 16 (4) of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1953, for imposing penalty for failure by the dealer to pay sales tax payable under the Central Act within the prescribed time.