2013 (5) TMI 766 - HC - VAT and Sales Tax

Summary

Issues:
The judgment involves the imposition of penalty under section 78(5) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1994 on goods involved in a stock transfer where declaration form ST-18-A was found blank or not carried, prior to a specific notification issued by the Government of Rajasthan.

Imposition of Penalty:
The revision petition was filed by the petitioner-Department against the order of the Rajasthan Tax Board, which had deleted the penalty imposed under section 78(5) of the Act on the respondent. The penalty amounting to Rs. 98,629 was initially imposed by the Deputy Commissioner (Appeals)-I, Commercial Taxes Department, Jaipur, but was later deleted by the Tax Board after the respondent appealed. The goods of the respondent-company were found to be under stock transfer with a blank declaration form ST-18A, leading to the imposition of the penalty by the petitioner-Department.

Legal Analysis:
The learned counsel for the petitioner acknowledged that the issue pertained to stock transfer prior to March 20, 2000, and was undisputed. The order passed by the Assessing Officer confirmed that the goods were indeed under stock transfer on October 15, 1996. Considering the timeline of the incident and the absence of entries in the declaration form, it was argued that the penalty could not be imposed based on the specific circumstances of the case. Reference was made to relevant judgments to support the contention that no penalty should be levied in cases similar to the present one.

Court Decision:
The High Court, after examining the facts and legal precedents, concluded that no irregularity, illegality, or perversity was observed in the decision of the Tax Board to delete the penalty. The court found that the issue was in line with previous judgments and the penalty could not be justified given the circumstances surrounding the stock transfer prior to the issuance of the relevant notification. Consequently, the revision petition was dismissed, upholding the decision of the Tax Board to delete the penalty imposed on the respondent-company.