Authority to invoke section 45A depends on specific notification and rank; general assessment powers are not enough.

Section 45A of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act operates as an independent penal provision and is not confined to assessment proceedings. The term "assessing authority" in Explanation II requires a specific Gazette notification authorising an officer not below the rank of Sales Tax Officer to act under that section. An earlier general notification could not substitute for the notification required by the Explanation, and there was no material showing that the Intelligence Officer held the requisite rank or had been specifically notified. The officer therefore lacked competence to initiate proceedings and levy penalty under section 45A, rendering the proceedings unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the Intelligence Officer had authority to initiate proceedings and levy penalty under section 45A of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 in the absence of a notification under Explanation II and in the light of the rank requirement contained therein.

Analysis: Section 45A is an independent penal provision and its operation is not confined to assessment proceedings. The expression "assessing authority" in Explanation II is not satisfied merely because an officer may exercise some assessment-related powers under the Act or under an earlier notification. The Explanation requires a specific Gazette notification authorising an officer not below the rank of Sales Tax Officer to exercise powers under section 45A. The earlier 1963 notification could not be treated as a notification under Explanation II, and on the record there was no material to show that the first respondent was an officer of the requisite rank or that he had been specifically notified for action under the provision.

Conclusion: The Intelligence Officer lacked competence to proceed under section 45A, and the impugned proceedings were unsustainable.

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