M/S Prachi Resins PVT. Limited vs. State Of Chhattisgarh
Held
The Court held that the writ petition suffers from delay and laches. The reasoning was that the petitioner had moved an application and was aware of the outcome, yet failed to challenge the order within a reasonable period. The Court also noted that the petitioner had not availed the alternative remedies available under Section 49(1) of the Act of 2005, which allows for an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal, and Section 49(7) of the Act of 2005, which permits approaching the State Government. The petition was rejected on the ground of delay. However, the Court clarified that this rejection would not preclude the petitioner from availing other legal remedies, provided they can show justifiable grounds for condonation of delay.
Facts
The petitioner, M/s Prachi Resins Pvt. Limited, challenged an order dated September 19, 2019, passed by the Additional Commissioner of Commercial Tax, Chhattisgarh. This order dismissed the petitioner's appeal filed under Section 49(1) of the Act of 2005. The original assessment order for the tax period 2013-14 was passed by the Assessing Authority on June 30, 2018. The petitioner filed the present writ petition after approximately 10 months from the date of the impugned order.
Key Issues
1. Whether the writ petition is maintainable on the grounds of delay and laches, considering the petitioner approached the High Court after a period of 10 months from the order of the Additional Commissioner, which itself was an appeal against the Assessing Authority's order. Petitioner's argument: The judgment does not record any specific arguments made by the petitioner regarding the delay or the merits of the case. Revenue's argument: The State contended that the writ petition suffers from delay and laches. It was argued that the petitioner, having initiated proceedings by filing an application and knowing the outcome, should have challenged the order within a reasonable period. Furthermore, the State pointed out that alternative remedies, such as approaching the Appellate Tribunal or the State Government under Section 49(7) of the Act of 2005, were available and not availed by the petitioner.
Sections Cited
Section 49(1), Section 49(7)
AI-generated summary — verify with the full judgment below
1 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR WPT No. 71 of 2020 M/s Prachi Resins Pvt. Limited Through Its Director, Pramod Lunawat, S/o Late Shri Phool Chand Lunawat, 56 Years, Lunawat Bhawan, Station Road, Raipur, Dist- Raipur, Chhattisgarh ---- Petitioner Versus
State Of Chhattisgarh Through Its Secretary, Department Of Commercial Tax, Chhattisgarh Rajya Mantralaya, Mahanadi Bhavan P.S.- Mandir-Hasaud, Naya- Raipur, (C.G.)
Additional Commissioner Of Commercial Tax GST Bhavan, North Block, Sector-19, Atal Nagar, Raipur, Dist.- Raipur, Chhattisgarh
Assistant Commissioner Of Commercial Tax Raipur, Division-I, Dist- Raipur, Chhattisgarh ---- Respondents For Petitioner : Mr. Pallav Mishra, Advocate For State : Mr. Jitendra Pali, Dy. A.G. Hon'ble Shri Justice P. Sam Koshy Order on Board 20/07/2020
The present writ petition has been filed challenging the order Annexure P/1 dated 19.09.2019 passed by the Additional Commissioner of Commercial Tax, Chhattisgarh.
The matter pertains to the assessment of the tax payable to the petitioner for the assessment year 2013-14. The Assessing Authority had assessed the total taxable turn over and the tax liability for the abov
The judgment continues below.
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