M/S Bhawani Traders vs. State Tax Officer, State Tax

Facts

The petitioner, M/s Bhawani Traders, filed a writ petition before the Rajasthan High Court at Jodhpur. The respondent is the State Tax Officer, State Tax, Ward-II, Anti-Evasion, Abu Road. The specific tax period and the amount in dispute are not explicitly recorded in the judgment. The procedural history indicates that the parties jointly submitted that the controversy in the writ application was resolved by a previous Division Bench decision in M/s. Shree Dev Narayan Marble v. State of Rajasthan & Ors. The previous decision was made with the consent of the parties, acknowledging the non-constitution of the Tribunal and providing protection under Section 112(8) of the Rajasthan Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017.

Held

The Court held that the writ petition should be disposed of in terms of the decision in M/s. Shree Dev Narayan Marble v. State of Rajasthan & Ors. The operative directions are that if the petitioner makes the payment as per the provisions contained in Sub-section (8) of Section 112 of the Act, further proceedings for recovery of the balance amount shall not be drawn. This is provided that the petitioner avails the statutory remedy of appeal within a period of three months from the date of the constitution of the Tribunal. The reasoning is based on the joint submission of the parties and the precedent set by the Division Bench in the aforementioned case, acknowledging the current administrative situation regarding the Tribunal's constitution. No issue was expressly left undecided.

Key Issues

1. Whether the writ petition should be disposed of finally, given the non-constitution of the Tribunal, with appropriate protection under Section 112(8) of the Rajasthan Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, and liberty to file an appeal upon constitution of the Tribunal? Petitioner's Argument: The petitioner agreed to the disposal of the petition on the condition that further proceedings for recovery of the balance amount would not be drawn if they made the payment as per Section 112(8) of the Act and availed the statutory remedy of appeal within three months from the Tribunal's constitution. Respondent's Argument: The respondent submitted that the Tribunal has not been constituted, and the process is ongoing. Therefore, the petition should not be kept pending but disposed of with protection under Section 112(8) of the Act, allowing the petitioner to file an appeal within a stipulated period from the Tribunal's constitution. Reliance was placed on a circular dated 23.03.2020 issued by the Government of Rajasthan Finance Department (Tax Division).