K.N.Goyal, J. - (1.) These two writ petitions arc between the same parties and raise similar questions of law and fact and may be conveniently disposed of together. In these petitions the orders of the assessment of Sugar Cane Purchase Tax passed by the appellate authority have been assailed.
(2.) In writ petition No. 373 of 1973 the assessment made was for the month of Mar., 1971. The petitioner contended that he had purchased only 144.15 quintals of sugar cane in that month. The capacity of his unit 'was 80 quintals per day. According to the petitioner, he crushed only 25 quintals per day from 1st to 11th March and thereafter from 29th to 31st March and his crusher remained closed down from 12th to 28th March. As this was considered incredible, the Assessing Authority and also the appellate authority who disbelieved the accounts furnished by the petitioner, levied tax on the basis of the admitted capacity of the crusher of the petitioner. It was thus assumed that the petitioner must have purchased 2400 quintals of sugar cane during 30 days. It appears that on 18th March the Khandsari Inspector had found that the petitioners crusher had some defect and for that reason one day only was excluded. Learned counsel for the petitioner has contended that there was no basis for the Assistant Sugar Commissioner for holding that 2400 quintals sugar cane was purchased.
(3.) We are unable to subscribe to the broad proposition canvassed before us by learned counsel that it should be necessary for the Assessing Authority to examine some evidence for deciding the amount of sugar cane purchased. It is obvious that the Assessing Authority would ordinarily not be in possession of any such evidence. It is certainly open to the Assessing Authority to consider the evidence adduced by the Asses-see and if the same be found unreliable or incredible or improbable, to reject it and to draw its own inferences. It is further open to the Assessing Authority to take into account the crushing capacity of a unit for drawing an inference about the likely quantity of sugar cane purchased by the unit. The capacity of the unit is undoubtedly a relevant piece of circumstantial evidence.;