2009 (6) TMI 962

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..... oner to pay penalty amount, within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of copy of this order.
PAUL VASANTHAKUMAR N. , JJ. ORDER:- N. PAUL VASANTHAKUMAR J.--The prayer in these writ petitions is to quash the impugned proceedings dated April 20, 2008 and January 9, 2008 passed for the assessment years 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06 and 2006-07, respectively. The petitioner in these cases is the authorised selling agent for SKODA motor cars and it is registered as a dealer on the file of the first respondent under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 and under the Tamil Nadu Tax on Entry of Motor Vehicles into Local Areas Act, 1990. The petitioner being an importer of motor vehicles from other States, is liable to pa .....

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..... aid proceedings a demand for penal interest for the above periods was made without even issuing a show-cause notice. The said action of the respondent in straight away raising a demand for penal interest without notice, is challenged in these writ petitions on the ground that under section 2(1)(aaa) of the Tamil Nadu Additional Sales Tax Act, penal interest can be levied applying section 24(3) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, for any belated payment of additional sales tax if it remains unpaid. In these cases till date assessments are not completed and therefore there cannot be any imposition of any additional sales tax and consequently no penalty could be imposed. The petitioner also contends that the principal Commissioner, in ex .....

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..... ctions to the assessing authorities to bear in mind certain procedures to be followed while levying penalty under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959. In paragraph 18, clauses (5) and (6), it is stated as follows: "18. (5) Notice shall always be issued before imposing any penalty. Though penalty under section 24(3) is automatic, issue of notice is desirable since there may be disputes on the actual amount of arrears, number of days of delay and the calculation of penalty. The notice to levy penalty shall contain the details of amount of arrears, due date for payment, date of payment, No. of days delay and the penalty payable. (6) Some assessing officers straight away issue notices to the dealers demanding to pay 24(3) penalty .....

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