M/S.Preeti Industrie vs. Dy.Commnr.Of Sales

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Preeti Industries, filed a writ petition before the High Court of Orissa at Cuttack challenging an order or action by the Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax, Cuttack-1, Central Circle. The specific tax period and the amount in dispute are not recorded in the judgment. The procedural history leading to the filing of the writ petition is also not detailed. However, the Court noted that subsequent developments, including the introduction of the new GST regime requiring the petitioner to register thereunder, have rendered the cause of action for the present petition non-existent.

Held

The Court held that due to subsequent developments, specifically the introduction of the new GST regime which necessitated the petitioner's registration thereunder, there was no longer a surviving cause of action for the present writ petition. The reasoning was that the changed legal and regulatory landscape had effectively rendered the original grievance moot. The ratio decidendi is that a writ petition will be dismissed if the underlying cause of action has become defunct due to subsequent events, particularly a change in the governing tax regime. The operative direction was to dismiss the writ petition.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petition is maintainable in light of subsequent developments requiring the petitioner to register under the new GST regime. The Petitioner, M/s. Preeti Industries, likely argued that the original grievance remained valid or that the subsequent developments did not extinguish their right to seek redressal for the past issue. The Revenue, represented by the Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax, likely contended that the introduction of the GST regime and the consequent requirement for the petitioner to register thereunder had rendered the original cause of action defunct, thereby making the writ petition infructuous. No specific provisions of law or precedents were mentioned in the judgment as being relied upon by either party.