Form C compliance governs post-amendment sales under the Central Sales Tax Act; earlier exemption cannot defeat reopening.

The amended condition requiring production of Form C under the Central Sales Tax Act applied to post-amendment inter-State sales, so the earlier exemption under section 8(5) could not continue for later transactions without compliance with section 8(4). The pre-amendment exemption did not create a vested right against subsequent legislative change, and promissory estoppel could not override the statutory amendment. The General Clauses Act was inapplicable because the amendment added a further condition rather than repealing the earlier provision. Reopening under section 28(1) was therefore permissible where exemption had been claimed for post-amendment sales without satisfying the new requirement.

---

---

Issues: Whether the amended condition requiring production of form C under the Central Sales Tax Act applied to post-amendment inter-State sales so as to deny the earlier exemption, and whether scrutiny and reopening under the Act were permissible.

Analysis: The exemption earlier granted under section 8(5) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 did not create an immutable immunity for future transactions. After the amendment brought in by section 152 of the Finance Act, 2002, the exemption became subject to compliance with the conditions in section 8(4), including production of form C where required. The plea of vested right and promissory estoppel could not prevail against the statutory amendment, because such doctrines do not operate against legislative action. The reliance on the General Clauses Act was misplaced, since the amendment did not repeal the earlier provision but only imposed an additional requirement for subsequent transactions. The reopening power under section 28(1) was therefore available where exemption had been claimed for post-amendment transactions without fulfilling the new condition.

Conclusion: The amended statutory condition applied to post-2002 transactions, the exemption could not be claimed without form C for those transactions, and reopening was legally sustainable.

---