Retrospective cancellation of dealer registration under sales tax rules is impermissible beyond the date of the cancellation order.

Cancellation of a dealer's registration certificate under the Orissa Sales Tax Rules, 1947 could not be given retrospective effect. Rule 16(1) empowered the Sales Tax Officer to cancel registration from a date specified in the order, but that power was limited to the date of the order or a future date and did not permit backdating. The Orissa High Court treated retrospective cancellation as beyond the rule-making authority and therefore unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether cancellation of a dealer's registration certificate under the Orissa Sales Tax Act could be given retrospective effect.

Analysis: Rule 16(1) of the Orissa Sales Tax Rules, 1947 empowered the Sales Tax Officer to cancel registration from a date specified in the order, but the power did not authorise selection of a date earlier than the order so as to make the cancellation operate retrospectively. The reasoning was supported by the settled view that the corresponding rule could contemplate only the date of the order or a future date, and not a backdated cancellation.

Conclusion: Retrospective cancellation was impermissible, and the impugned orders were unsustainable.

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