Timely show-cause reply must be considered before cancelling registration; ignoring it vitiates the cancellation.

Cancellation of a registration certificate cannot be sustained where a timely show-cause reply was filed and delivered to the sales tax office but was ignored by the competent authority. The record showed that the reply had been submitted within the time allowed, yet the cancellation proceeded on the mistaken assumption that no reply existed. For that reason, the cancellation order and the revisional order were set aside, and the matter was remanded for fresh consideration after taking the reply into account.

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Issues: Whether cancellation of the registration certificate could be sustained when the show-cause reply filed within time was not considered.

Analysis: The petitioner had filed a show-cause reply within the time granted, and the record showed that the reply was delivered to the sales tax office. The impugned cancellation proceeded on the erroneous premise that no reply had been filed. Since the reply was submitted in time but was not taken into account by the competent authority, the cancellation order and the revisional order could not be sustained.

Conclusion: The cancellation of registration and the revisional order were set aside, and the matter was sent back for fresh consideration after taking the show-cause reply into account.

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