Proper service of notice and fresh consideration after remand were mandatory; the assessment order was set aside.

An assessment order passed after remand cannot simply confirm the earlier assessment; the remand required the assessing authority to reconsider the matter afresh and reach an independent conclusion. Service of notice under Rule 52(1) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Rules, 1959 must follow the prescribed modes, and affixture without compliance with those requirements is not valid. As the dealer was not duly served and was denied proper opportunity before the impugned order, the order breached fair procedure and was set aside.

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Issues: Whether the assessment order passed after remand could be sustained when the earlier assessment was treated as confirmed and the dealer was not duly served with notice in the manner required by Rule 52(1) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Rules, 1959.

Analysis: The remand required the assessing authority to redo the exercise afresh and reach an independent conclusion, so a further confirmation of the earlier assessment was impermissible. Rule 52(1) prescribes the modes of service of notice, including personal service, service at the residential address, or registered post, and recourse to affixture without following the prescribed procedure was not valid. Since the dealer was not given due notice and opportunity before the impugned order was made, the order offended the requirements of fair procedure and could not stand.

Conclusion: The impugned assessment order was unsustainable and was set aside in favour of the assessee.

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