High Court of Punjab and HaryanaVATAP/90/2018dismissed

M/S Panchkula Roller Flour Mills (P) Ltd v. State Of Haryana And Another

2024-02-16Mr. Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma,Mr. Justice Harsh Bunger15 pages

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0+'$2 "Section 33 Rectification of Clerical Mistakes :- An assessing authority or any such authority as may be prescribed, may, at any time, within two years from the date of any order passed by him and subject to such conditions as may be prescribed, rectify any clerical or arithmetical mistake apparent from the record. Section 40 Revision:- (1)The Commissioner may call on his own motion for the record of any case pending before, or disposed of by, any officer appointed under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the Act to assist him or any assessing authority or appellate authority for the purposes of satisfying himself as to the legality or to propriety of any proceedings or of any order made therein and may pass such order in relation thereto as he may think fit.

Provided that no order, shall be so revised after the expiry of a period of five years from the date of the order: Provided further that the aforesaid limitation of period shall not apply to a case where the order is revised as a result of the decision of the Tribunal or any court of law in a similar case

Provided further that the assessee or any other person shall have no right to invoke the revisional powers under this sub-section.

(1A) The power under sub-section (1) shall not be exercised in respect of any issue or question which is the subject matter of appeal or review before, or which has been decided on appeal or in review by the Tribunal (2)The State Government may, by notification, confer on any officer the powers of the Commissioner under sub-section (1) to be exercised subject to such conditions and in respect of such areas as may be specified in the notification.

(3) No order shall be passed under this section which adversely affects any person unless such person has been given a reasonable opportunity of being heard. 5$20*"1 6$(#)%+ AA A E%01'

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In contrast to the aforesaid two provisions, Section 40 of the Act, which provides for revision, used the word, 'so revised'. Different words used by the Legislature in this section as compared to other two sections have to be given its true meaning. Plain reading of the language suggest that no order shall be revised after the expiry of a period of five years from the date of order. The only meaning which can be assigned to the language used is that the proceedings have to conclude with the passing of the order. It is not merely initiation of proceedings for revision. Second proviso to Section 40(1) of the Act enlarges the limitation, if the revision is a result of any decision of the Tribunal or Court.

10.

To somewhat similar is the language used in Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act. The relevant provisions of Sections 20(1) and 20(3) of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, are reproduced as under:- "(1) The Commissioner of Commercial Taxes may suo motu call for and examine the record of any order passed or proceeding recorded by any authority, officer or person subordinate to it, under the provisions of this Act, including sub-section (2) of this section, and if such order or proceeding recorded is prejudicial to the interests of revenue, may make such enquiry, or cause such enquiry to be made and subject to the provisions of this Act, may initiate proceedings to revise, modify or set

aside such order or proceeding and may pass such order in reference thereto as it thinks fit.

xx xxxx (3) In relation to an order of assessment passed under this Act, the powers conferred by subsections (1) and (2) shall be exercisable only within such period not exceeding four years from the date on which the order was served on the dealer, as may be prescribed."

(emphasis supplied).

11. While interpreting the aforesaid provisions, a Division Bench of Andhra Pradesh High Court in Toshiba Anand Batteries Limited's case (supra) opined that exercise of power of revision should conclude before the end of four years from the date of passing of the order, which is sought to be revised. Relevant para from the judgment are extracted below:- "According to our view the exercise of powers of revision must come to an end within a period of four years from the date of passing of the order by the subordinate authority. The effect of section 20(3) of the APGST Act in our opinion, is that the revising authority is powerless beyond the period of four years to deal with the revision. The exercise of powers as a whole cannot extend beyond the period of four years from the date on which the order of subordinate authority was served on the dealer."

12. No judgment taking a contrary view was cited by learned counsel for the State.

13. If the facts of the case are read in the light of the enunciation of law, referred to above, the assessment of the petitioner for the year 1995-96 was framed on 28.3.2000 and for the year 1996-97, it was framed on 31.7.2000, the period of five years would expire on 28.3.2005 and 31.7.2005, for the

respective two years. It is not in dispute that by that time the proceedings had not been concluded. Even in the earlier round of litigation, the petitioner had challenged the notices issued on 22.1.2007. Prior to that it is not the case of either of the parties that in the matter before the Court any interim stay has been granted. The proceedings initiated for revision of the orders of assessment having not concluded within the period of five years from the date of order sought to be revised, as envisaged under Section 40 of the Act, the Revisional Authority now does not have any jurisdiction to pass the order..."

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We have carefully considered the matter. The review application is very much maintainable because there are two apparent errors of law in the impugned order as pointed out by the State Representative. There is categorical provision in third proviso to section 40 (1) of the HGST Act that the assessee or any other person shall have no right to invoke the revisional powers under the said sub-section. Inspite thereof, the Tribunal has held in the impugned order that the revisional proceedings could be initiated under section 40 of the HGST Act even on the request of the dealer. Besides it, the Tribunal has held in the impugned order that the revisional proceedings initiated within limitation period of five years need not be completed within the said period and may be completed even after expiry of the said period.

The said finding is also contrary to law. First proviso to section 40 (1) of the HGST Act categorically provides that no order shall be revised after the expiry of a period of five years from the date of the order. Consequently the final revisional order has to be passed within the said limitation period of five years. Mere initiation of revisional proceedings within limitation period of five years would not enable the Revisional Authority to pass final revisional order after expiry of the limitation period of five years. This Tribunal has consistently held in so many cases that revisional order passed after the expiry of limitation period is hit by the bar of limitation, even if the revisional proceedings had been initiated within the limitation period.

It is thus evident that final revisional order has to be passed within the limitation period and mere initiation of revisional proceedings is not sufficient to enable the Revisional Authority to pass the revisional order even after expiry of the limitation period. Thus impugned order dated 05.12.2001 of the Tribunal suffers from both patent errors of law and, therefore, the same has to be reviewed and the review application is very much maintainable. Revisional proceedings were rightly dropped as time barred by the Revisional Authority because the limitation period of five years for revising the impugned assessment orders had expired long ago.

revisional orders did not suffer from any infirmity, error or illegality so as to require interference in appeal. The contention on behalf of the assessee-respondent that it should not suffer due to fault of Revisional Authority in not concluding the revisional proceedings expeditiously within limitation period, although apparently attractive, is completely devoid of merit. As already noticed above, the assessee had no right to invoke revisional powers under section 40 (1) of the HGST Act. Consequently the question of the assessee suffering loss due to non-conclusion of revisional proceedings within the limitation period by the Revisional Authority does not arise. On the other hand, it appears that the assessee indirectly managed to invoke revisional powers. The assessee had right of appeal to challenge the assessment orders.

However, admittedly the assessee did not avail of the said right at all. The assessee also had right to file application for rectification of the assessment orders within two years under section 33 of the HGST Act. However, the assessee also did not avail of the said remedy within the limitation period. The assessee for the first time made application in the year 1995 (as submitted by State Representative) to the Assessing Authority regarding levying of CST at higher rate. Thus even the said application, which allegedly was forwarded by the Assessing Authority to the Revisional Authority resulting in initiation of the revisional proceedings, was moved long after expiry of limitation period for seeking rectification of the assessment order.

Thus the assessee itself was at fault in not exercising the right of appeal against the assessment orders and also in not exercising the right of seeking rectification of the assessment orders within the limitation period. The assessee, therefore, cannot shift the blame to the Revisional Authority.

For the reasons aforesaid, this review-application is allowed. Impugned order dated 05.12.2001 of the Tribunal pertaining to appeal STA 85 of 2001-02 for assessment year 1991-92 only is set aside and the said appeal filed by the assessee against revisional order stands dismissed." - H$ .">$ ("2$&0117 =%+$ #.2%0=.

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