Year-of-sale deduction rule governs claims for returned goods, with refund relief tied to the original assessment year.

A deduction for goods returned by purchasers under rule 9(b)(i) of the Kerala General Sales Tax Rules had to be claimed in the assessment proceedings for the year of sale. A later return of the goods did not the deduction to the assessment year in which the return occurred. The assessment for the relevant year was therefore to be modified on a year-of-sale basis, with consequential refund relief for any excess tax paid.

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Issues: Whether a claim for deduction in respect of goods returned by purchasers under rule 9(b)(i) of the Kerala General Sales Tax Rules, 1963, had to be made in the assessment proceedings for the year in which the goods were sold or in the year in which they were actually returned.

Analysis: The governing rule, as applied by the Court, required the deduction to be claimed in the assessment proceedings relating to the year of sale. A return of goods in a later year did not shift the assessment year in which the deduction had to be allowed. On that basis, the assessment for the relevant year was directed to be modified and the excess tax, if any, paid for the earlier year was liable to be refunded.

Conclusion: The claim for deduction had to be made in the assessment year in which the goods were sold, and not in the year in which the goods were returned.

Final Conclusion: The assessment was directed to be adjusted in accordance with the year-of-sale principle, with consequential refund relief to the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: A deduction for returned goods under rule 9(b)(i) must be claimed and allowed in the assessment proceedings for the year of sale, not in the year of return.

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