Return filing duty under sales tax law applies despite no registration, with penalty for non-compliance.

A dealer whose turnover exceeded the statutory return threshold had a duty to file the return under section 9 of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, and that obligation was not displaced by the fact that registration under section 8-A had not been obtained. The article explains that the duty arose from dealer status and turnover, not from prior registration, and that failure to comply attracted the penalty under section 15(a). It further notes that earlier observations treating section 9 as obiter in a different offence context did not control this prosecution for non-filing of the return.

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Issues: Whether a dealer whose turnover exceeded the statutory limit was bound to submit a return under section 9 of the Madras General Sales Tax Act notwithstanding that he had not obtained registration, and whether failure to do so attracted punishment under section 15(a).

Analysis: Section 9 imposed a duty on every dealer whose turnover exceeded Rs. 10,000 to submit a return. The reference to registration under section 8-A did not displace that obligation, because the liability to file a return arose from the dealer's status and turnover, not from prior registration. The earlier observations treating section 9 as obiter in the context of an offence under section 13 did not control this case, since the present prosecution was directly for failure to submit the return required by section 9. Section 15(a) provided the penalty for failure to comply with that statutory requirement.

Conclusion: The respondent was liable under section 15(a) read with section 9 for not filing the return, and the acquittal was unsustainable.

Final Conclusion: The conviction recorded by the trial court was restored and the acquittal was set aside, leaving the respondent guilty of the statutory default in filing the return.

Ratio Decidendi: A dealer whose turnover crosses the statutory return threshold must submit the return required by the sales tax law irrespective of whether registration has been obtained, and failure to do so is punishable under the provision prescribing penalty for non-compliance.

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