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TMI Blog1964 (1) TMI 40X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ay. The partners of the dissolved firm did not do business of commission agency or any other business jointly as partners or otherwise after the date of the dissolution. On 3rd August, 1963, the firm through its partners received from the District Excise and Taxation Officer, Bhatinda, respondent No. 1, notice for reassessment of sales tax for the years 1959-60 and 1960-61 with a direction to appear before him on 16th August, 1963. The case was adjourned from time to time and on 23rd September, 1963, the petitioners filed an application that since the firm had been dissolved before the notice for reassessment was issued, the said notice was illegal. No order was passed on this application nor was any communicated to the petitioners and the case was adjourned to 4th October, 1963, for reassessment. On 28th September, 1963, the petitioners sent an application through their Advocate to respondent No. 1 for stay of proceedings so as to enable them to approach this Court on the writ side and obtain a stay order. This prayer was not acceded to and the petitioners were informed that the assessment would be finalized on 4th October, 1963. On the last mentioned date, some accounts of the pe ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f escaped assessment could frame reassessment. It was expressly denied that the petitioners had sent any intimation about the dissolution of the firm on 2nd June, 1962. Such information was sent only on 3rd August, 1962, though they were required to do so under the law within 30 days of the date of the change in the constitution of the firm. As the petitioners' case for the years 1959-60 and 1960-61 for purpose of reassessment were pending before the Assessing Authority, the impugned assessment was in accordance with law. The respondents have also produced the record of the case and have drawn our attention to two notices of reassessment in Form S.T. XIX dated 26th May, 1962, sent by the Assessing Authority to M/s. Mangat Rai Madan Mohan, Kot Kapura, stating that in consequence of definite information in his possession, the Assessing Authority had reasons to believe that taxable turnover of the assessees' business assessable to sales tax for the year ending 31st March, 1960, had been under-assessed and that the Assessing Authority was proposing to reassess the said turnover. For this purpose, the presence of the firm was required on 7th June, 1962, to show cause why the contemplat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s' assessment. In reply to the second objection, he has emphasized that if the impugned order is tainted with want of jurisdiction, then the mere existence of an alternative remedy is no bar and this Court should dispose of the petition on the merits. In so far as the objection based on the ground of a joint petition assailing the assessment of more than one year is concerned, in my opinion, the writ petition having been admitted, it would not be proper and just to throw out the petition on this ground, particularly when the grounds of challenge are exactly similar. Coming on to the objection based on the existence of an equally efficacious alternative remedy provided in the statutory machinery, it is no doubt true that the existence of such alternative remedy is not always a sufficient reason for refusing a party quick relief by a writ or order, prohibiting an authority acting without jurisdiction from continuing such action, or quashing an order in a clear-cut case, where threat to impose or realize the tax appears to be obviously without authority of law, and it is not necessary for the purpose of such determination to go into the facts. But too much interference through extrao ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r Sales Tax Act. The following passage from the judgment of the Supreme Court has been reproduced by the Bench of this Court in the aforesaid case: "Assessment proceedings must be held to be pending from the time the said proceedings are initiated until they are terminated by a final order of assessment. Proceedings duly initiated in time can be completed without time-limit." In this connection, it is also desirable to bear in mind that power to tax and the effective exercise of that power are indispensable to the proper functioning of Government, in that, tax measures facilitate good social order; in the case of a welfare State of socialistic pattern, its importance is somewhat greater. It is of course undeniable that the imposition of tax must be founded on clear, certain and unambiguous statutory provisions, but it is equally essential to keep in view the fact that evasion of lawful tax by dishonest means or by fraudulent shams, deserves to be effectively checked, for, successful fraud on, and illegal evasion of, revenue must tend to increase pro tanto the rate of tax on the shoulders of a great body of goods and honest citizens, who do not desire to adopt such manoeuvres. Liab ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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