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TMI Blog1957 (4) TMI 53X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... assessed to sales tax by the Superintendent of Sales Tax, Purnea. The assessment order dated 12th January, 1951, is enclosed (exhibit A). 3.. The assessee then moved the Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Bihar, Patna, in appeal. The petition is enclosed (exhibit B). For the reasons recorded in his order dated 16th January, 1952, (exhibit C), the Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax, Bihar, dismissed the appeal. 4.. Being dissatisfied with the Deputy Commissioner's order the assessee came up before the Board of Revenue, Bihar, in revision. The revision petition is enclosed (exhibit D). For the reasons explained in its order, dated 27th November, 1952, (exhibit E), the Board allowed the petition. 5.. Being dissatisfied with the Board's order, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... th April, 1955, made to the High Court under section 25(1) of the Act, which was forwarded to them with the Board's letter No. 1-64/52-25, dated the 18th May, 1955. For the reasons explained in the said statement, the Board referred for the decision of the High Court only one question of law mentioned in the statement. In pursuance of the order dated the 13th October, 1955, of the High Court, on a petition filed by the assessee, the Board hereby refers the following further question under section 25(4) of the act: "Whether the proceeding for assessment of sales tax initiated by the Sales Tax Officer on the 29th of June, 1950, against the assessee for the tax due for the period form the 1st of July, 1947, to the 31st of March, 1948, has been ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ion by the High Court in M.J.C. No. 369 of 1955: "Whether assessment proceeding from the quarter ending 30th September, 1947, up to the year ending 31st March, 1948, which is governed under the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1947, can be initiated latest by the end of the year 1951-52?" In M.J.C. No. 387 of 1955 the Board of Revenue has been required by the High Court to state a case on the following question of law under section 25(3) of Bihar Act XIX of 1947: "Whether the proceeding for assessment of sales tax initiated by the Sales Tax Officer on the 29th of June, 1950, against the assessee for tax due for the period from the 1st of July, 1947, to the 31st of March, 1948, has been validly started, and whether the assessee could be lawfully assesse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tive and so the proceedings for assessment of tax for the period from the 1st July, 1947, to the 31st March, 1948, could not be taken under the new law. In our opinion the Board has taken an erroneous view of law on this point. It is a well established principle that the law of limitations must be applied not with regard to the time when the cause of action arose but with regard to the point of time when the proceedings are initiated. In the present case the proceeding for assessment was initiated on the 29th June, 1950, and on that date section 13(6) had been amended by Bihar Act VI of 1949 and under the amended section the limitation was four years from expiry of the period in respect of which tax is due. In our opinion, the amended secti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... assessee under the old law as it stood before the amendment. In other words, the right of the authorities to take proceedings for assessment under the old law had not become barred when Bihar Act VI of 1949 was passed and came into effect. In our opinion, therefore, the proceeding initiated against the assessee on the 29th June, 1950, in the present case was governed by the provisions of section 13(6) of Bihar Act XIX of 1947 as amended by Bihar Act VI of 1949. It follows that the proceeding initiated under section 13(5) on the 29th June, 1950, against the assessee is legally valid and is not barred by limitation. For these reasons we hold that the two questions of law upon which the Board of Revenue has stated a case must be answered in fa ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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