Mandatory interest liability on tax default was held rectifiable as a mistake apparent on the record.

Interest under section 8(1) of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948 accrues automatically on default in payment of admitted tax and is a statutory liability arising by operation of law. If the assessing authority omits to levy such interest while completing the assessment, the omission is not a discretionary choice but a failure to apply a mandatory provision. That omission is a mistake apparent on the record and can be corrected under section 22, which permits rectification of obvious errors in the order. The challenge to rectification accordingly failed.

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Issues: Whether the omission to levy interest in the original assessment order could be corrected by rectification under section 22 of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948.

Analysis: Interest under section 8(1) was held to accrue automatically on default in payment of admitted tax and was a statutory liability arising by operation of law. Where the assessing authority omitted to charge such interest while completing the assessment, the omission was not a matter of discretion but a failure to apply a mandatory provision. Such omission constituted a mistake apparent on the record and fell within the rectificatory power under section 22, which permits correction of obvious mistakes in the order.

Conclusion: The omission to levy interest was validly rectifiable under section 22, and the assessee's challenge failed.

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