1959 (9) TMI 31 - HC - VAT and Sales Tax

Court dismisses challenge against sales tax assessment due to failure to exhaust statutory remedies.

Raja Traders and Rajeshwar Brothers Versus The State of Bihar and Others

The court dismissed the petitioners' challenge against the assessment of sales tax on their estimated turnover, which included direct sales made by the ... - Issues:- Assessment of sales tax on estimated turnover- Inclusion of sales made directly by the corporation in the turnover- Petitioners' failure to produce accounts before Sales Tax AuthoritiesAnalysis:The petitioners, as sole selling agents of a corporation, challenged the assessment of sales tax on their estimated turnover, alleging that the amount from direct sales by the corporation to customers was wrongly included. The petitioners contended that they were acting as brokers, and no sale was made by them for taxation under the Bihar Sales Tax Act. However, the court dismissed the application on two grounds. Firstly, the petitioners failed to utilize the statutory remedies provided under the Act, such as approaching the Board of Revenue for a reference to the High Court. The court cited a previous case to emphasize that bypassing statutory remedies to seek relief under Article 226 of the Constitution is impermissible. The court also noted that the petitioners did not raise the argument regarding the nature of sales before the Sales Tax Authorities, as they never produced accounts or returns. The court highlighted that the question of different types of sales was a matter of accounting, which was not presented before the lower tax authorities. Therefore, the court concluded that the petitioners failed to establish a case for the grant of a writ under Article 226 of the Constitution. Consequently, the application was dismissed, with costs imposed on the petitioners.