Reopening of sales tax assessment requires failure beyond the assessee's control, not non-production of accounts despite repeated opportunities.

Section 14 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 permits reopening only where delay in filing a return, or filing an incorrect or incomplete return, occurred for reasons beyond the assessee's control. The text states that a best judgment assessment under section 12(2) was made after notice and repeated opportunities to produce accounts, which the assessee did not use, so the assessment was not based on any return default beyond control. A revised return and medical certificate were said not to satisfy the statutory requirement. The refusal to reopen was described as a reasoned order, and the assessee was noted to have an effective statutory appeal under section 31.

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Issues: Whether the assessment made under section 12(2) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 suffered from violation of natural justice, and whether the assessee was entitled to reopening of the assessment under section 14 of the Act.

Analysis: The assessment was preceded by notice and repeated opportunities to produce accounts, but the assessee did not produce the records. The best judgment assessment was therefore made on the assessee's failure to comply with repeated opportunities, and not on any failure to file a return in time or to file an incorrect or incomplete return because of circumstances beyond control. Section 14 permits reopening only where the failure to submit the return in time or the submission of an incorrect or incomplete return was due to reasons beyond the control of the applicant. The subsequent revised return and medical certificate did not satisfy that statutory requirement. The refusal to reopen was also a reasoned order, and the assessee had an efficacious statutory appeal under section 31 of the Act.

Conclusion: There was no violation of natural justice in the assessment proceedings, and the request for reopening under section 14 was rightly ed. The challenge failed.

Ratio Decidendi: Reopening under section 14 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 is available only when the failure to submit the return in time or the submission of an incorrect or incomplete return was due to reasons beyond the assessee's control; it cannot be invoked to undo a best judgment assessment made for failure to produce accounts despite repeated s.

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