9911796707
TMI Blog2009 (7) TMI 1175X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... deleting the consequent levy of penalty?" The assessee, in this case, is an oil mill. The assessee submitted its tax return for the assessment year 1992-93 and also produced its accounts. Subsequent to the submission of return, there was an inspection by the officials of the enforcement wing on February 4, 1993. At the time of inspection of the mill, actual stock of goods was checked and compared with the book stock, which revealed some shortage in the stock of groundnut, groundnut kernel, groundnut oil and groundnut oil cake. There was shortage in the groundnut and groundnut kernel in the order of 40 and 160 kgs. There was surplus noted in the groundnut oil and groundnut oil cake to the extent of 20 and 79 kgs. respectively. There was a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n in the order of 2,97,254 kgs. and 4,49,692 kgs. respectively. The tax due was therefore worked out in a sum of Rs. 7,12,191 to which surcharge and additional sales tax were added up and the liability of the assessee was arrived at Rs. 10,66,503. The assessing authority also imposed another 150 per cent penalty which worked out to a sum of Rs. 15,99,755. On appeal before the Appellate Assistant Commissioner by the assessee, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner felt that the energy consumed was taken only up to December 1992 and the consumption for the remaining period of the assessing year was not taken into account, that a comparison of the production details of oil of the year with reference to the consumption of energy, only up to Dece ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r 13, 1997 took the view that consumption of electricity alone cannot be a ground for estimation of groundnut kernel. It was also held that the records reveal that the output extract by the mill was not compared with other mills dealing with crushing. The Tribunal further held that when such a comparison was not made, the data obtained by the lower authority cannot be said to be real and accurate. For the said reasons and for certain other reasons, the Tribunal set aside the order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner as well as the assessing authority and allowed the appeal in toto. Assailing the order of the Tribunal in so far as it relates to the present respondent/assessee, the State has come forward with this revision. We have hear ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s of the consumption of electricity can also be adopted. It was also held that without an actual test check or comparable data from other similar oil mills, adoption of a particular rate of consumption will be somewhat an arbitrary basis and a best judgment assessment based on such an arbitrary figure will be illegal. Applying the ratio laid down in the abovesaid decisions, we are convinced that in the present case on hand, when the assessing authority noted an exorbitant consumption of electricity energy for a period of about nine months in an assessment year, which prima facie did not tally with the production of oil and oil cakes reported in the turnover, apart from the shortages noticed in the stocks held by the assessee, there was eve ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to such consumption of electrical energy by the assessee. In that respect, the order of the Tribunal in merely setting aside the order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner as well as that of the assessing authority without providing any scope for such re-examination cannot be sustained. We say so because, as rightly pointed out by the assessing authority, the exorbitant consumption of electricity energy, as compared to an extent of turnover reported with the discrepancies noted in the stock position at the time of inspection did call for re-examination of the taxable turnover based on the consumption of electricity energy. We are therefore convinced that the remittal order passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner was well justified ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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