2013 (12) TMI 1743 - HC - VAT and Sales Tax

Summary

Issues involved: Appeal u/s 68 of Punjab Value Added Tax Act against penalty under Section 51(7) (b) for clerical mistake in documents and failure to establish tax evasion, and failure to follow own judgment on similar issue.

Summary:
The appeal was filed against a penalty imposed under Section 51(7) (c) and Section 51(12) of the Act due to a clerical mistake in documents related to the transportation of goods. The appellant, a private limited company, sent goods to its Ludhiana branch but faced detention as the address was wrongly mentioned. The penalty was upheld by the Tribunal, leading to the present appeal.

The appellant argued that the mistake was unintentional and there was no attempt to evade tax, citing the submission of relevant invoices. The Tribunal's decision was challenged based on a previous judgment involving similar circumstances where the dealer was not held liable for a penalty.

After considering the submissions, the Court found merit in the appellant's explanation. It was noted that the mistake in the documents was inadvertent, and there was no intention to evade tax. The appellant had voluntarily produced the necessary documents, including invoices and a GR, which indicated compliance. The Court emphasized that there was no tax liability at the entry stage in Punjab, and the Tribunal's deviation from its previous decision lacked justification.

Consequently, the substantial questions of law were answered in favor of the assessee, and the appeal was allowed.