Joint and several tax liability permits recovery of firm arrears from a partner's personal assets.

Where a sales tax statute makes a partnership firm and its partners jointly and severally liable for tax dues, the taxing authority may recover the arrears from any one liable partner's personal assets. The existence of firm assets or the non-initiation of proceedings against all other partners does not, by itself, make recovery against one partner unlawful. This principle aligns with joint and several liability under the Indian Contract Act and permits direct recovery from a partner where the statutory liability is joint and several.

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Issues: Whether tax arrears due from a partnership firm could be recovered from the personal assets of a partner without first proceeding against the firm's assets or the estates of deceased partners.

Analysis: Section 19 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 makes the firm and each partner jointly and severally liable for tax or other amounts payable by the firm. The principle of joint and several liability, also recognised in section 43 of the Indian Contract Act, 1872, permits the creditor to proceed against any one or more of the persons liable. On that footing, recovery action against the petitioner's personal assets was not shown to be contrary to law merely because proceedings were not first taken against the firm's assets or against all other partners.

Conclusion: The recovery proceedings against the petitioner were valid and the challenge failed.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statute imposes joint and several liability on partners for the firm's tax dues, the taxing authority may proceed against any one partner's assets for recovery of the arrears.

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