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TMI Blog1997 (3) TMI 597X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... payment of the admitted tax. Sales Tax Officer imposed penalty at the rate of 50 per cent of amount in arrears under section 13(5) of the Act. 3.. It is urged that there was no mens rea involved and without considering that aspect and without grant of any opportunity, penalty has been levied thereby violating principles of natural justice. 4.. Mr. S.C. Lal, learned senior standing counsel for the Revenue submitted that the petitioner is a chronic defaulter and for nonpayment of large amount of admitted tax without any plausible explanation, penalty was levied. This is not the first instance penalty was levied. Penalty at the rate of 10 per cent of the amount withheld was levied earlier after due notice, and opportunity. The statute does not provide for any grant of opportunity and there being admitted default, the levy of penalty within the prescribed limit cannot be defaulted. 5.. At this juncture it is relevant to take note of section 13(5) of the Act which is the vital provision. Section 13(5) of the Act reads as follows: "13. Payment and recovery of tax and penalty.-(1) to (4)............ (5) If any amount is not paid by the due date in pursuance of a notice issued ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... epted that there is no specific requirement principles of natural justice mandated it. 8.. Natural justice is another name for common sense justice. Rules of natural justice are not codified canons, but they are principles ingrained into the conscience of men. Natural justice is the administration of justice in a common sense liberal way. Justice is based substantially on natural ideals and human values. The administration of justice is to be freed from the narrow and restricted considerations which are usually associated with a formulated law involving linquistic technicalities and grammatical niceties. It is the substance of justice which has to determine its form. The expression natural justice and legal justice do not present a water-tight classification. It is the substance of justice which is to be secured by both, and whenever legal justice fails to achieve this solemn purpose, natural justice is called in aid of legal justice. Natural justice relieves legal justice from unnecessary technicality, grammatical pedantry or logical prevarication. It supplies the omissions of a formulated law. The adherence to principle of natural justice as recognised by all civilised Stat ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ........... It will, I suppose usually be of an administrative kind; but sometimes it will involve matter of law as well as matter of fact, or even depend upon matter of law alone. In such cases the Board of Education will have to ascertain the law and also to ascertain the facts. I need not add that in doing either they must act in good faith and 'fairly listen to both sides', for that is a duty lying upon every one who decides anything. But I do not think they are bound to treat such a question as though it were a trial......... The board is in the nature of the arbitral Tribunal, and a court of law has no jurisdiction to hear appeals from the determination either upon law or upon fact. But if the court is satisfied either that the Board have not acted judicially in the way I have described, or have not determined the question which they are required by the Act to determine, then there is a remedy by Mandamus and Certiorari". Lord Wright also emphasised from the same decision the observation of the Lord Chancellor that the Board: "Can obtain information in any way they think best always giving a fair opportunity to those who are parties to the controversy for correcting or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... erything that affects a citizen in his civil life. 10.. Natural justice has been variously defined by different judges. A few instances will suffice. In Drew v. Drew and Lebura (1855) 2 Macg. 1.8, Lord Cranworth defined it as "universal justice". In James Dunbar Smith v. Her Majesty The Queen (1877-78) 3 AC 614, 623 JC Sir Robert P. Collier, speaking for the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, used the phrase "the requirements of substantial justice," while in Arthur John Spackman v. The Plumstead District Board of Works (1885) 10 AC 229, 240, Earl of Selbourne, L.C. preferred the phrase "the substantial requirements of justice". In Voinet v. Barrett (1985) 55 LJRD 39, 41, Lord Esher, M.R., defined natural justice as "the natural sense of what is right and wrong". While, however, deciding Hookins v. Smethwick Local Board of Health (1890) 24 QBD 712, 716, Lord Esher, M.R. instead of using the definition given earlier by him in Voinet v. Barrett (1985) 55 LJRD 39 chose to define natural justice as "fundamental justice". In Sidon v. Baldwin (1963) 1 WB 539, 578, Harman L.J., in the Court of Appeal countered natural justice with "fair-play in action", a phrase favoured by Bhag ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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