- (1.) AGAINST the order of assessment passed by the Assistant Excise and Taxation Commissioner-cum-Assessing Authority, Jalandhar, the petitioner-corporation, filed an appeal before the Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner (Appeals), Jalandhar Division, Jalandhar. This appeal of the petitioner came to be dismissed by the appellate authority, vide its order dated February 8, 1994. Aggrieved by the orders of the Assessing Authority and the appellate authority, the petitioner has preferred an appeal before the Sales Tax Tribunal, Punjab, under section 20 of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948. This appeal of the petitioner is accompanies by an application for entertaining the appeal without payment of tax. A prayer has also been made for stay of the recovery sought to be made by the authorities of the department.
(2.) APPEAL filed by the petitioner before the Sales Tax Tribunal is still pending consideration. The application for hearing of the appeal without pre-deposit of the tax and stay of the recovery is also pending adjudication before the Sales Tax Tribunal. While the Appellate Tribunal has not been able to hear the matter, the departmental authorities have issued notice to the petitioner for deposit of the amount specified in the assessment order with a stipulation that in case the petitioner fails to deposit the amount, proceedings under the Land Revenue Act, 1887, will be started. Argument of the learned counsel for the petitioner is that when the Tribunal constituted by the Government has not been able to hear the appeal of the petitioner, as also the application filed by the petitioner for stay of the recovery of the tax, there is no justification for the departmental authorities to use coercive methods for realisation of the tax. During the course of hearing, learned counsel made a statement that very recently, an officer has been posted to act as the Sales Tax Tribunal, Punjab, and the appeal filed by the petitioner has been fixed for consideration on October 4, 1994. His argument is that departmental authorities are acting arbitrarily in seeking to realise the tax by coercive methods even when the appeal filed by the petitioner is pending consideration before the Tribunal.
(3.) IN somewhat similar type of cases, we have come across notices issued by the departmental authorities to the parties for realisation of the tax in terms of the order of assessment even when the appeal filed by the aggrieved party is pending before the Tribunal and request made by it for grant of interim relief has not been adjudicated upon. This methodology adopted by the departmental authorities cannot at all be appreciated. Once the statute provides a remedy of appeal, the party has every right to avail that remedy and there is no justification for the Assessing Authority to use coercive methods for realisation of the tax even when the appeal filed by the aggrieved party is pending and the Tribunal has not been able to apply its mind to the request made by the appellant before it for grant of interim relief. It may be a different thing where a party after filing the appeal adopts dilatory tactics for delay in the decision of the appeal after getting a stay. However, in the ordinary circumstances it is wholly unjust for the Assessing Authority or the departmental authorities to make a post-haste effort for the recovery of tax by use of coercive methods.;