Rectification under sales tax law is limited to apparent errors and cannot replace appeal or revision against penalty orders.

Section 55 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 is limited to rectifying errors apparent on the face of the record, including obvious clerical mistakes, and cannot be used as a substitute for appeal or revision. Where the assessee seeks in substance to challenge a penalty order without having pursued the available appellate or revisional remedies within time, the rectification remedy is inappropriate. As no apparent error warranting correction was shown, the petition under section 55 was held not maintainable and the challenge to the penalty order failed.

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Issues: Whether a petition under section 55 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 could be maintained to challenge the penalty order when the assessee had not pursued the available appellate or revisional remedies, and whether any error apparent on the face of the record was made out for rectification.

Analysis: Section 55 was held to be confined to rectification of errors apparent on the face of the record, such as clerical or similar obvious mistakes. The Court found that the petitioners were in substance seeking redress against the penalty orders themselves, a matter which could have been pursued in appeal or revision within the prescribed time. Since those remedies were not availed and the grievance did not disclose any apparent error warranting rectification, the invocation of section 55 was held to be inappropriate.

Conclusion: The rectification petition was not maintainable and the challenge to the penalty order failed.

Ratio Decidendi: Section 55 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 cannot be used as a substitute for appeal or revision and is limited to correcting errors apparent on the face of the record.

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