Sarkar, J. - (1.) The appellant had been assessed to sales tax for the year 1957-58 under the Madhya Bharat Sales Tax Act 1950. This Act was repealed on April 1, 1659 by the Madhya Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1958. On December 31, 1960, a notice was issued to the appellant by an Assistant Commissioner of Sales Tax under the 1958 Act wherein it was stated, "I am satisfied that your sale during the period from 1-4-1957 to 31-3-1958 has escaped assessment and thereby rendered yourself liable to be reassessed under S. 19(1) of the Act". Pursuant to this notice fresh assessment proceedings were started by the Assistant Commissioner in respect of the sales in the year 1957-58 and on March 31, 1961, he made an order imposing an additional tax on the appellant of Rs. 3l,250/- for that year and a penalty of Rs. 15,000/-. The appellant moved the High Court of Madhya Pradesh for a writ of certiorari to quash the order but was unsuccessful. It has now appealed to this Court against the judgment of the High Court.
(2.) We will first set out the material portion of S. 19(l) of the Act of 1958 under which the assessment was made: "Whether an assessment has been made under this Act and the Commissioner, in consequence of any information which has come into his possession, is satisfied that any sale or purchase of goods chargeable to tax under this Act, during any year......has escaped assessment............................ the Commissioner may.........after giving the dealer a reasonable opportunity off being heard and after making such enquiry as he considers necessary, proceed, in such manner as may be prescribed' to re-assess the tax payable on such sale or purchase and the Commissioner may direct that the dealer shall pay, by way of penalty in addition to the amount of tax so assessed a sum not exceeding that amount." It is necessary also to refer to S. 30 of the Act which authorises the Commissioner to "delegate any of his powers and duties under this Act", subject to certain restrictions and exceptions which do not require consideration in this case, to Assistant Commissioners and certain other officers. The Commissioner made an order under this section on April 1, 1959 delegating to Assistant Commissioners his "powers and duties specified in column (3) of the table" set out in the order. That column was headed "Description of Powers" and contained the following:"To make an assessment or re-assessment of tax or penalty......... and to exercise all other powers u/ss. 18,19 and 22".
(3.) It was said that the power to reassess conferred by S. 19(1) on the Commissioner was subject to various duties one of which was that he had to be satisfied that sales has escaped assessment, without the performance of which duties the power could not be exercised. It was contended thee though provision had been made by S. 30 for the delegation of duties, the Commissioner had by his order of April 1, 1959, delegated only his power under S. 19 but not the duties. Therefore, it was argued, that the Assistant Commissioner to whom the power had been delegated, could validly exercise that power only after the Commissioner had been satisfied personally that sales had escaped assessment. It was lastly said that as the Assistant Commissioner had exercised the power to reassess on his own satisfaction that sales had escaped assessment, the exercise of the power was void.;