Branch transfer exemption under sales tax law bars penalty for a blank declaration form on a covered transfer.

Penalty under section 78(5) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act was not leviable where goods were transferred from head office to a branch before 20.3.2000 and the governing notification exempted stock transfer, branch transfer, depot transfer and SOS transfer from the declaration-form requirement. In that setting, carrying a blank or incomplete ST-18A form did not attract penalty because the transfer itself fell within the notified exemption. The Tax Board's deletion of penalty was therefore sustained and no interference in revision was called for.

---

---

Issues: Whether penalty under section 78(5) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1994 was exigible for carrying a blank declaration form ST-18A in respect of a branch transfer of goods effected prior to 20.3.2000.

Analysis: The transaction was admittedly a transfer of goods from the head office to the Jaipur branch and was prior to 20.3.2000. The relevant notification exempted stock transfer, branch transfer, depot transfer and SOS transfer from the requirement of carrying the declaration form. Once the transfer itself fell within that category, the absence or incompleteness of the ST-18A form lost significance. In these circumstances, the earlier deletion of penalty was consistent with the applicable notification and the issue had already been settled by the Court in similar matters.

Conclusion: Penalty under section 78(5) was not leviable, and the revision petition failed.

Final Conclusion: The order of the Tax Board deleting the penalty was sustained and no interference was called for in revision.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a notified inter-branch or stock transfer transaction is covered by a governing notification that dispenses with the declaration form requirement, penalty cannot be sustained merely because the form was blank or incomplete.

---