TMI Blog1987 (4) TMI 449X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e joint Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner and the Commercial Tax Officer, by sub-section (2) of section 20. This power is confined to orders made or proceedings recorded by the authorities, officers or persons subordinate to them. Similarly, sub-section (1) of section 20 confers the power of revision upon the Commissioner of Commercial Taxes. These powers are supposed to be exercised in the interest of Revenue. Against an order of the joint Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner or the Commercial Tax Officer, under sub-section (2) of section 20, an assessee can file an appeal to the Appellate Tribunal under section 21. Section 22 provides for a revision to the High Court against the orders of the Tribunal. Sub-section (2-A) of section 19 says ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... appeal has been preferred under sub-section (1), shall not be stayed pending disposal of the appeal." A reading of the two sub-sections together shows that pending an appeal before the Appellate Tribunal, the collection of disputed tax shall not be stayed except by and under an order of the joint Commissioner on an application filed by the dealer. Now coming to the power of the High Court, sub-section (6) and subsection (6-A) of section 22 are relevant. Sub-section (6-A) was introduced by amending Act 18 of 1985, which amendment had also introduced sub-section (6-A) in section 21. Sub-sections (6) and (6-A) of section 22 read as follows: "(6) Notwithstanding that a petition has been preferred under sub-section (1), tax shall be paid i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f express language of the proviso to subsection (6), it is idle to contend that even the High Court is deprived of the power to stay the collection of the tax pending the revision. The proviso expressly confers a discretion upon the High Court either to fix the appropriate number of instalments for payment of tax or give such other direction as it thinks fit with respect to payment of tax disputed in the revision. Again, having regard to the language of the proviso, it cannot be said that the only order that the High Court can make is to fix the instalments, as contended by the learned Government Pleader. That is one type of order that the High Court can make. But it can also make appropriate direction with respect to the payment of tax as ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ls that the facts of a particular case do warrant either the payment of tax in instalments or stay of collection of part of the tax in dispute, it may make such an order. The court would not stay the collection of the entire disputed tax except in very grave cases where it feels that there has been a grave miscarriage of justice. We may now refer to a few decisions cited on this aspect. In Polisetti Narayana Rao v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Hyderabad [1956] 29 ITR 222, a Bench of this Court considered the power of this Court to stay the collection of disputed tax pending a reference under section 66 of the Indian Income-tax Act, 1922. In that case the High Court directed the Appellate Tribunal to state a case for its opinion under sub ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o be pending, for stay, and if the appellate authority acts without jurisdiction or in excess of its jurisdiction or in case it exercises its jurisdiction improperly, the assessee can always approach the High Court either under article 226 or 227 of the Constitution. It must, however, be mentioned that the above decisions pertain to the power of this Court in exercise of its advisory jurisdiction and therefore, the principle of the said decisions can have no application herein. Here a revision is provided to the High Court by section 22. The proviso to sub-section (6) of section 22 expressly confers upon the High Court the power either to fix instalments for payment of disputed tax or to make such other appropriate order with respect to i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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