- (1.) The petitioners are engaged in the business of trading in electronic and information technology products such as mobile/cellular phone, laptop, computer, video camera etc. The petitioner imports these products from outside the territory of India and sells them within the State of U.P. as well as outside the State of U.P. after charging Value Added Tax and Central Sales Tax at the rates applicable to such products. For the month of April 2013, the authority passed a provisional assessment order assessing the tax at Rs.31,75,00,000 under the Value Added Tax Act, 2008 (hereinafter referred to as the VAT Act) and Rs.27,75,00,000.00 under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the CST Act). For the month of May 2013, the assessing authority passed a provisional assessment order assessing the tax at Rs.44,20,00,000.00 under VAT Act and Rs.22,35,00,000.00 under Central Sales Tax Act. The petitioner, being aggrieved by the provisional assessment order, filed separate appeals under Section 55 of the U.P. VAT Act, which was, eventually, allowed by an order dated 21.03.2014 and the matters were remanded back to the assessing authority to pass a fresh assessment order. The assessment proceedings are pending before the assessing authority as on date and no fresh assessment order has been passed as yet.
(2.) At the time when the petitioner filed the appeal under Section 55 of the VAT Act, the petitioner also filed an application for stay of the disputed demand. The appellate authority granted an interim stay of only 50% of disputed amount of tax. The petitioner took the matter to the Tribunal, which granted only 75% stay of the disputed amount. The High Court directed the petitioner to furnish security with regard to the disputed amount under the CST Act. The petitioner filed a Special Leave Petition, wherein the Supreme Court directed the petitioner to deposit 10% of the amount demanded amount and furnish bank guarantee to the extent of 40% of the amount demanded. Based on the said orders, the petitioner deposited a sum of Rs.16,06,94,740.00 of the tax under protest for the month of April and May, 2013 under the VAT Act and the CST Act.
(3.) After the appeal was allowed by the appellate authority by an order dated 21.03.2014, the Supreme Court dismissed the Special Leave Petition as infructuous. The Supreme Court however, left it open to the petitioner to recover the amount deposited by way of pre-deposit from the respondent authority. The Supreme Court also indicated that the respondent authority will pay the amount of pre-deposit and release the bank guarantee in accordance with law. For facility, the order of Supreme Court dated 17.04.2014 is extracted hereunder: "At the time of hearing of these petition, the Ld. Counsel for the petitioner submitted that during the pendency of these petitions, the appeal filed by the petitioner before the Additional Commissioner (Appeals-II), Commercial Tax has already been decided in its favour on 21st March, 2014. In the aforestated circumstances, the petitions have become infructuous. It would be open to the petitioner to recover the amount deposited by way of pre-deposit from the respondent authority. We are sure that the respondent authority shall pay the amount of pre-deposit and release the bank guarantee in accordance with law. The special leave petitions are disposed off as having become infructuous.";