Appellate Tribunal remand power under sales tax law upheld despite possible enhancement of tax liability.

Under section 12-A of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, the Appellate Tribunal's power to pass such order "thereon" as it thinks fit was read with the Act's scheme and the proviso contemplating refund or additional tax on recomputation. On that basis, the Tribunal was not limited to allowing or rejecting individual grounds in isolation. It could determine the correct legal basis of assessment and remand the matter for fresh computation by the assessing authority, even where the recomputation might increase tax liability. The remand jurisdiction was therefore upheld and the assessment was left to be recomputed in accordance with the Tribunal's directions.

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Issues: Whether the Appellate Tribunal, while dealing with an assessee's appeal under the Madras General Sales Tax Act, had jurisdiction to remand the assessment and direct a reassessment on a basis that could result in enhancement of tax liability.

Analysis: The Tribunal's power under section 12-A(4) to pass such order "thereon" as it thinks fit was construed in the context of the Act as a whole. The assessee alone had the right of appeal, but section 12-A(5), especially its second proviso, contemplated that an appellate order could necessitate either refund of excess tax or collection of additional tax after recomputation. The wording of the proviso, read with the scheme of the Act, showed that the Tribunal was not confined to merely accepting or rejecting each ground in isolation. It could determine the correct legal basis of the assessment and remit the matter to the assessing authority for recomputation accordingly.

Conclusion: The Tribunal had jurisdiction to remand the assessment, even though giving effect to its order might enhance the assessment.

Final Conclusion: The revision challenge to the Tribunal's remand order failed, and the assessment was left to be recomputed in accordance with the Tribunal's directions.

Ratio Decidendi: Under section 12-A of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, the Appellate Tribunal may pass an order on the appeal that requires reassessment by the assessing authority, and its jurisdiction is not defeated merely because the resulting recomputation may increase the tax liability.

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