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2020 (11) TMI 154 - HC - VAT and Sales TaxVires of Bihar Entry of Goods into Local Area for Consumption, Use or Sale Therein (Amendment and Validation) Act, 2008 - ex-parte assessment order - It is the argument of the petitioner that the schedule under the amendment Act, 2007 wholly substituted the schedule under the principal Act, which also meant that all notifications prescribing rate of tax for the scheduled goods stood repealed - HELD THAT:- SO 95 dated July 31, 2008 which prescribes that the said Notifications were to come into force with effect from April 1, 2008 is merely clarificatory in nature and in any event would not supersede or substitute the earlier Notifications, i.e. SO 92, SO 159; or SO 99. It is a settled principle of law that fiscal statutes need to be interpreted and applied strictly and the benefit of doubt, if at all, would enure in favour of the assessee. However, it is equally settled that if the assessee is liable to be subjected to incidence of taxation, then he must abide by and be dutiful in paying the tax, expeditiously, and in accordance with law - Upon perusal of the impugned assessment order dated August 25, 2011 passed by the Assistant Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Gopalganj Circle, Gopalganj, which according to Shri Vikash Kumar, the learned counsel for the Revenue, is not placed fully on record, we notice that he same was passed in the absence of the assessee and was ex parte in nature. The order appears to have been passed without proper application of mind. Even the order passed by the Revisional Authority, running into one and a half pages, to say the least, is cryptic in nature, not even referring to, much less dealing with the contentions raised by the petitioner. The Assessing Officer shall pass a fresh order with respect to the assessment in issue, i.e., assessment years 2006-07 and 2007-08 - Petition allowed by way of remand.
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