Tvl. Velmurugan Marketing vs. The Deputy Commercial Tax Officer

Facts

The petitioner, Tvl.Velmurugan Marketing, represented by its Proprietor, filed a writ petition challenging an ex-parte order dated 08.08.2024 issued by the Deputy Commercial Tax Officer-2. The petitioner contended that the order was passed without jurisdiction and in violation of statutory provisions. The appeal period for the impugned order had expired. The petitioner sought to quash the said order. The respondent is the Deputy Commercial Tax Officer-2, the authority who passed the impugned order.

Held

The Court acknowledged that the petitioner had suffered an ex-parte order and that the appeal period had expired. Instead of quashing the order outright, the Court granted the petitioner permission to file an appeal within 30 days from the date of receipt of a copy of the Court's order. This permission was granted without reference to the limitation period. However, the petitioner was directed to pay 10% of the disputed tax amount as pre-deposit. The Court stipulated that if the petitioner failed to remit the pre-deposit or file the appeal within four weeks, the benefit of this order would stand automatically recalled. The Court did not decide on the merits of the petitioner's claim of lack of jurisdiction or violation of statutory provisions.

Key Issues

1. Whether the ex-parte order dated 08.08.2024, issued by the Respondent, is liable to be quashed for being without jurisdiction and in violation of statutory provisions? The Petitioner argued that the impugned order was passed without jurisdiction and in clear violation of statutory provisions, necessitating its quashing. The Respondent did not record any specific arguments in the judgment.