Deemed dealer liability extends sales tax penalty to a deceased dealer's legal representative, with recovery limited to estate assets.

A legal representative deemed to be a dealer under the Madras General Sales Tax Act, 1959 is subject to the Act's full liability framework, including penalty under section 12(3). The analysis distinguishes narrower succession language under section 24B of the Income-tax Act, 1922 and relies on the broader deeming approach reflected in section 159(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 to treat the representative as standing in the deceased dealer's place. Recovery of the penalty is permissible, but only against the deceased's assets in the representative's hands, with section 25 treating penalty as tax for recovery purposes.

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Issues: Whether penalty under section 12(3) of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, 1959 could be levied on the legal representative of a deceased dealer, and whether such penalty could be recovered only to the extent of the deceased's assets in the representative's hands.

Analysis: Section 15 of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, 1959 deems the legal representative of a deceased dealer to be a dealer for the purposes of the Act. On that footing, the legal representative is treated as the dealer for the full range of the Act's provisions, including section 12(3). The court distinguished the scheme of section 24B of the Income-tax Act, 1922, and relied on the broader deeming language in section 159(3) of the Income-tax Act, 1961 as supporting the construction that the representative is not merely a person liable to pay tax, but is placed in the position of the dealer himself. Section 25 further provides that penalty payable under the Act is deemed to be tax for recovery purposes, though recovery is confined to the assets of the deceased in the representative's hands.

Conclusion: Penalty under section 12(3) was leviable on the legal representative as deemed dealer, and recovery was permissible to the extent of the deceased's assets in the representative's possession.

Final Conclusion: The Tribunal's contrary view was set aside and the assessment order including penalty was restored in favour of the revenue.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statute deems the legal representative of a deceased dealer to be a dealer for all purposes of the Act, the statutory penalty applicable to the dealer is leviable on the representative, and recovery may be confined to the deceased's estate in the representative's hands.

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