Appeal maintainability on admitted tax deposit turns on tax shown in the return, not the higher disputed rate.

An appeal against assessment was maintainable where the assessee had deposited the tax admitted in the return, even though the revenue later claimed a higher rate. The proviso was construed to require payment of the tax admitted by the appellant as due in the return, including the rate applied on the returned turnover. Rule 41(2) was read as requiring the assessee to first calculate and deposit the tax shown in the return. The commentary notes that compelling the appellate authority to decide the correct tax rate at the stage of entertainment would be anomalous, because that very rate was in dispute in the appeal.

---

---

Issues: Whether an appeal against assessment was maintainable when the assessee had deposited the tax admitted in the return, but not the tax calculated at the higher rate later asserted by the revenue.

Analysis: The relevant proviso required proof of payment of the tax admitted by the appellant to be due. The amended language referring to tax or fee due under the Act, read with the words "admitted by the appellant in the return", was held to refer to the tax disclosed by the assessee in the return, including the rate applied by him on the returned turnover. Rule 41(2) reinforced that the assessee must first calculate and deposit the tax shown in the return. Requiring the appellate authority to decide the correct rate of tax at the stage of entertainment would produce an anomalous result, because the very rate was itself in dispute in the appeal.

Conclusion: The appeal was rightly entertained because the assessee had deposited the tax shown in the return.

---