Tvl.J.J.Store, Represented By vs. The Commissioner Of Commercial

Held

The Court held that the impugned order of assessment dated July 11, 2016, was passed in gross violation of the principles of natural justice. The Court found that the assessing authority had failed to consider the objections filed by the petitioner on April 26, 2016, and incorrectly stated in the assessment order that no objections were filed. The Court emphasized that the petitioner had specifically requested invoice-wise particulars of third-party dealers to enable them to file their objections and explanations, and this request was not adequately addressed before passing the final order. Consequently, the Court set aside the impugned order. The Assessing Authority was directed to issue a fresh notice to the petitioner for an inquiry, supply the documents sought by the petitioner, and complete the assessment in line with Circular No. 3/2019 issued by the Commissioner, Commercial Taxes, concerning assessments based on web reports. The ratio decidendi is that an assessment order cannot be passed without considering the objections filed by the assessee, especially when the assessee has requested necessary supporting documents to substantiate their objections, thereby upholding the principles of natural justice.

Facts

The petitioner, Tvl.J.J.Store, represented by its Proprietor, S.Sankar, filed a writ petition challenging an order of assessment passed by the Commercial Tax Officer, Thiruppathur Assessment Circle, for the period 2014-15 under Section 21 of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006. The assessment order was dated July 11, 2016. The petitioner had received a pre-revision notice on April 6, 2016, proposing to reverse Input Tax Credit (ITC) based on a verification of an Intranet Web report and a comparison with sales details in the petitioner's returns and those of selling dealers. The petitioner responded on April 23, 2016, requesting invoice-wise particulars of third-party dealers to file objections. The assessing authority received these objections on April 26, 2016.

Key Issues

1. Whether the impugned order of assessment dated July 11, 2016, passed by the Commercial Tax Officer, Thiruppathur Assessment Circle, is liable to be set aside for violating the principles of natural justice, specifically concerning the opportunity to file objections against the proposed reversal of Input Tax Credit (ITC)? Petitioner's Contention: The petitioner argued that the assessing authority failed to consider their objections filed on April 26, 2016, and erroneously concluded that no objections were filed. They contended that this constituted a gross violation of the principles of natural justice, as they had sought an opportunity to explain and provide supporting documents after receiving the necessary invoice-wise particulars from the third-party dealers. They relied on the fact that an acknowledgment card for their objections was available. Respondents' Contention: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the respondents. However, the impugned order suggests the respondents proceeded on the basis that no objections were filed.