M/S. Gandour INDIA Food Processing P. LTD vs. The Assistant Commissioner [Assessment]

Facts

The petitioner, M/s. Gandour India Food Processing P. Ltd., filed a writ petition before the High Court of Kerala challenging an order passed by the Assistant Commissioner (Assessment), SGST, Special Circle-III, Ernakulam. The specific tax period and the amount in dispute are not explicitly stated in the provided judgment excerpt. The procedural history indicates that the matter was pending before the High Court. The judgment relies on a prior Division Bench decision of the same court in Sheen Golden Jewels (India) Pvt. Ltd. v. The State Tax Officer (IB)-1 and others, and a subsequent writ appeal (W.A. No. 747/2019) concerning the same petitioner.

Held

The Court held that the present writ petition is covered against the petitioner by the judgment of a Division Bench of the High Court in Sheen Golden Jewels (India) Pvt. Ltd. v. The State Tax Officer (IB)-1 and others. Consequently, the writ petition is dismissed in light of the judgment dated 30.11.2022 in W.A. No. 747/2019, which presumably affirmed the Division Bench's decision. The ratio decidendi is that if a matter is squarely covered by a precedent from a higher bench of the same court, a coordinate bench or a single judge bench must follow that precedent. Although the writ petition is dismissed, the Court granted the petitioner eight weeks' time from the date of the judgment to either file a reply to the notice issued to them or to file an appeal against the impugned order of assessment, acknowledging that the matter was pending before the court.

Key Issues

1. Whether the present writ petition is covered by the Division Bench judgment of this Court in Sheen Golden Jewels (India) Pvt. Ltd. v. The State Tax Officer (IB)-1 and others. Petitioner's Contention: The petitioner's arguments are not recorded in the provided judgment excerpt. The judgment states the matter is covered against the petitioner by the Division Bench judgment. Revenue's Contention: The revenue's arguments are not explicitly detailed, but the judgment implies that the revenue would rely on the Division Bench judgment of Sheen Golden Jewels (India) Pvt. Ltd. to contend that the petitioner's case is covered. The judgment also refers to a subsequent writ appeal (W.A. No. 747/2019) which likely upheld the Division Bench's view.