Transit Declaration Form requirements cannot expand seizure powers where statutory documents are otherwise in order.

Goods in transit were described as not liable to seizure solely because they were not accompanied by a Transit Declaration Form. The text explains that the U.P. Value Added Tax Act, 2008 and the Rules permit seizure only on specified grounds such as absence of proper documents, false or incomplete documents, undervaluation, or lack of bona fide dealer traceability. The Transit Declaration Form is treated as a transit document under Section 52 and Rule 58, and its absence creates only a rebuttable presumption that the goods were intended for sale within the State. A circular could not expand the statutory grounds for seizure, and where the accompanying documents were otherwise in order, seizure on that basis was unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether goods in transit could be seized merely because they were not accompanied by a Transit Declaration Form.

Analysis: The seizure power under the U.P. Value Added Tax Act, 2008 and the Rules framed thereunder was examined with reference to the specific grounds on which goods may be seized, including absence of proper documents, false or incomplete documents, undervaluation, or lack of bona fide dealer traceability. The Transit Declaration Form was found to be a document prescribed for transit through the State under Section 52 and Rule 58, the non-carrying of which only raises a rebuttable presumption that the goods were meant for sale within the State. It was held that the circular requiring such form could not enlarge the statutory grounds of seizure, and in the absence of any defect in the other accompanying documents, the goods could not be treated as liable to seizure solely for want of the Transit Declaration Form.

Conclusion: Goods in transit cannot be seized merely for absence of a Transit Declaration Form; the seizure was without jurisdiction and unsustainable.

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