TMI Blog2016 (2) TMI 244X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Respondents that any of the inter-state purchases, that had escaped inclusion in the revised returns, were not genuine transactions. - it is not the stand of the Respondents that the inter-state purchase transactions in respect of which the C-Forms are being asked for by the Petitioner are not genuine. As far as the furnishing of bank statements is concerned, it is stated that the Petitioner has by a letter dated 10th July 2015 furnished the said documents. This was not a case where the Respondent No. 2 was justified in declining to issue C-Forms to the Petitioner. - department directed to issue the C-Forms - Decided in favor of assessee. - W. P. (C) 8272/2015 & CM No. 17432/2015 (for stay) - - - Dated:- 1-2-2016 - S. Muralidhar And Vibhu Bakhru, JJ. For the Petitioner : Mr. Balbir Singh, Senior Advocate with Mr. Krishnamohan Menon, Ms. Rubal Maini, Mr. Ujjwal Parera and Mr. Gautam Dhamija, Advocates For the Respondents : Mr. Sanjay Ghose and Ms. Pratishtha Vij, Advocates ORDER Dr. S. Muralidhar, J. 1. This is a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution by Ingram Micro India Pvt. Ltd. ( IMIPL ) which is registered as a dealer under the Delhi Va ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 8(3) of the Act, is liable to pay 2% tax or the rate applicable to intra-state sales whichever is low. In terms of Section 8(4) of the CST Act it is mandatory for the selling dealer to furnish to the prescribed authority a declaration in C-Form to be furnished by the purchasing dealer. The C-Form has to be obtained from the sales tax authority of the concerned purchasing dealer and furnished to the selling dealer. 7. Under The Central Sales Tax (Delhi) Rules, 2005 ( CST Delhi Rules ) there are provisions regarding the obtaining and furnishing of C-Forms. Rule 5 (1) to (4) of the CST Delhi Rules which is relevant for the purposes of present case reads as under: 5. Authority from which Declaration Form C may be obtained, use, custody and maintenance of records of such forms and matters incidental thereto. (1) A registered dealer, who wishes to purchase goods from another such dealer, on payment of tax at the rate applicable under the Act, to sales of goods by one registered dealer to another, for the purpose specified in the purchasing dealer s certificate of registration, shall obtain from the Commissioner the blank Declaration Form, that is to say Form C referred t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... m earlier; or (iv) some adverse material has been found by the Commissioner suggesting any concealment of sale or purchase or furnishing inaccurate particulars in the returns; the Commissioner shall, after affording the applicant an opportunity of being heard, withhold, for reasons to be recorded in writing, issue of Declaration Form C to him: PROVIDED that the Commissioner may, after affording the applicant an opportunity of being heard, withhold, for reasons to be recorded in writing, issue of declaration Form C for transactions prior to 1st October, 2005 to him if the applicant has not filed proper requisition account for such declaration forms or the applicant has not filed proper utilization account in Form 2B of the Forms issued to him earlier: PROVIDED FURTHER that the Commissioner may instead of withholding Declaration Form C to the applicant, issue such forms in such numbers and subject to such conditions and restrictions, as he may consider necessary. PROVIDED ALSO that notwithstanding the provisions of any other rule the issue of Declaration Form C to a dealer to whom a certificate of registration under the Act has been granted for the fi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... iod to which the declaration or the certificate relates . However, the proviso to Rule 12 (7) of the CST Rules, 1957 states that if the prescribed authority is satisfied that the selling dealer was prevented by sufficient cause for furnishing such declaration or certificate within the aforesaid time the authority may allow further time to the selling dealer to furnish such declaration as that authority may permit . A collective reading of the aforementioned rules reflects the intention of not specifying a rigid and inflexible time limit for furnishing a C-Form. In any event, as far as a purchasing dealer making a request for issuance of C-Forms under the CST Delhi Rules, there appears to be no such inflexible condition as to the time within which the request should be made. 11. The central thrust of the submission by Mr. Ghose on behalf of the Respondents has been that the issuance of C-Form is integrally connected to the purchase figures as disclosed by the purchasing dealer in his returns and no C-Form can possibly be issued in respect of inter-state purchases which have not been reflected in the returns of the dealer. The submission is that notwithstanding that there might ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ng to the Petitioner the purchase register for the entire FY 2010-11 ought to have been examined. In ground (iv) of the writ petition, the Petitioner explains this as under: It is submitted that the details of the disputed transactions were always present (since inception) in the registers which are maintained in the e-form in an MS Excel sheet. It is submitted that it was on the suggestions of the special audit team that the details of the disputed transactions were temporarily removed from the DVAT 30 registers so as to match with the incorrectly revised returns. This was so because, the rejection of second revision was believed to be the final position by the Petitioner for a period of time. 14. It is not the case of the Respondents that the above assertion is factually incorrect. Importantly, the Court does not find it to be the stand of the Respondents that any of the inter-state purchases, that had escaped inclusion in the revised returns, were not genuine transactions. It is the Petitioner s case that it has produced the relevant invoices, letters from the vendors seeking C-Forms and proof of payment to vendors. Importantly, the Petitioner also furnished the detail ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ngs . In a given case if the Appellate Authority is satisfied that the Assessee was prevented by reasonable and sufficient cause which disenabled him to file the Form in time, it can be accepted . 18. On his part, Mr. Ghose drew the attention of the Court to the decision in India Agencies (Regd.), Bangalore v. Additional Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Bangalore (2005) 2 SCC 129 which was in the context of Central Sales Tax (Karnataka) Rules, 1957. The Supreme Court was in that case of the view that Rule 6(b)(ii) of the said Karnataka Rules had to be strictly construed and the duty of the authorities was to simply implement it without going into the question of any hardship that may be caused even to an honest dealer . The Supreme Court pointed out that Rule 12 of the CST Rules was intended to prevent misuse of C-Forms by unscrupulous and mischievous dealers and makes it obligatory for the dealer to furnish indemnity bond . The Court further emphasised that the very purpose of filing the C-Forms was that there should not be any suppression of inter-state sales by selling dealer and evasion of tax to State from where the actual sales are effected. Secondly, the purchasing d ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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