Wilful omission from accounts must be proved before trade tax penalty can stand; mere clerical irregularities are insufficient.

Penalty under section 13A(4) of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948 is attracted only where the authority, after hearing the dealer and considering the explanation, is satisfied that goods were wilfully omitted from the accounts, registers or other relevant documents. Here, the goods were accompanied by a bill at checking, and the stock register, bill book and purchase vouchers were produced in response to notice. The disputed entries also appeared in the books of account. Mere stamping of the bill number and the later binding of loose stock-register forms did not establish wilful omission from the books, so the penalty was quashed.

---

---

Issues: Whether penalty under section 13A(4) of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948 was validly imposed on the ground that the goods were wilfully omitted from the accounts and documents.

Analysis: Penalty under section 13A(4) can be imposed only when the authority is satisfied, after considering the explanation and hearing the dealer, that the goods were wilfully omitted from being shown in the accounts, registers and other relevant documents. In the present case, the goods were found accompanied by a bill at the time of checking, and the stock register, bill book and purchase vouchers were produced in response to the notice. The entries relating to the disputed goods were shown in the books of account. The reasons relied upon by the authorities, namely stamping of the bill number and the loose form of the stock register later bound, did not establish that the goods were outside the books of account.

Conclusion: The penalty was not sustainable and was quashed; the revision succeeded in favour of the assessee.

---