V. N. Khare, J. - (1.) The appellant herein is a company registered under the Indian Companies Act having its registered office at Bankshal Street, Calcutta in the State of West Bengal and factory at Jamshedpur in the State of Bihar. The appellant manufactures tinplates and black plates in its factory at Jamshedpur and is registered under the Bihar Sales Tax Act and Central Sales Tax Act.
(2.) For the assessment year 1985-86, the appellant had filed its return. The Commercial Tax Officer by its order dated 1-12-93, assessed the appellant under the Central Sales Tax Act for the period 1-4-85 to 31-3-86, after disallowing the appellant's entire claim of stock transfer to outside States and treating the same as inter-State sales and thus levied tax @ 10% thereon. In pursuance of the said assessment order the Commercial Tax Officer issued a notice of demand for a sum ofRs. 4,53,50,430. The appellant challenged the aforesaid assessment order and the notice of demand by means of a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution before the High Court of Judicature at Patna. In the said writ petition, the respondents therein raised a preliminary objection that in view of an alternative remedy being available to the appellant, the petition deserves to be rejected. The High Court accepted the objection of the respondents in the writ petition and dismissed the same primarily on the ground that, the appellant has an equally efficacious alternative remedy. However, the High Court while throwing out the writ petition on the ground of alternative remedy, made certain observations touching upon the merits of the case. The appellant, in view of the fact that the petition was dismissed on the ground of alternative remedy available to it, filed an appeal against the order of assessment before the Joint Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Appeals) along with an application for condoning the delay in filing the appeal in view of the pendency of the writ petition before the High Court.
(3.) The Joint Commissioner of Commercial Taxes (Appeals) rejected the appeal filed by the appellant at the stage of admission in view of the observations made by the High Court. The Appellate Authority, while rejecting the appeal observed that the delay in filing the appeal could have been condoned, but since the High Court has not given any direction to admit the appeal on merits, the appeal cannot be entertained. Under such circumstances, the appellant filed a review application in the High Court but the same was rejected by an order dated 27-8-96. It is in this way the appellant has come to this Court by filing a special leave petition.;