Mandatory Form D declaration for concessional sales tax may be rectified if the defect is cured before assessment finalisation.

A dealer claiming the concessional rate under the Central Sales Tax Act must furnish the prescribed declaration in Form D, duly completed and signed by the authorised Government officer. Although the form is mandatory, a removable defect does not necessarily defeat the claim if it is cured before assessment is finalised. The authority should give a fair opportunity to have the defect corrected by the issuing officer before completing the assessment. The remand was therefore justified, and the assessee was entitled to rectify Form D and pursue the concessional rate.

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Issues: Whether, on the facts and circumstances, the revisional authority was right in remanding the assessment so that the assessee could be given an opportunity to remove the defect in Form D and claim the concessional rate under section 8(1)(a) of the Central Sales Tax Act.

Analysis: The statutory scheme requires a dealer claiming the concessional rate to furnish a certificate in the prescribed form, duly filled and signed by a duly authorised Government officer. Form D prescribed under Rule 12 is therefore mandatory, but an incomplete form containing a removable defect does not necessarily stand excluded if the defect is cured before assessment is completed. Since the form is issued by a Government officer and the assessee cannot itself fill the particulars, it is just and fair to permit the assessee to seek correction from the issuing officer before the assessment is finalised.

Conclusion: The remand was justified and the assessee was entitled to an opportunity to have the defect removed in Form D.

Ratio Decidendi: A mandatory prescribed declaration form for concessional tax treatment may be accepted if a removable defect in the form is cured before completion of assessment, and the assessing authority should afford a fair opportunity to rectify such defect.

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