Partner named in valid firm recovery certificate can face tax recovery, and continuation is not time-barred.

A partner can be proceeded against for a firm's tax recovery where the recovery certificate specifically names the partner along with the firm. The court distinguished earlier authorities limited to certificates issued only in the firm's name, and held those objections inapplicable here. It also held that recovery was not barred by limitation because the original certificate against the firm had been issued within time, and later steps were only a continuation of that valid recovery action. The writ petition therefore failed on both liability and limitation grounds and was dismissed.

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Issues: (i) Whether the individual partner of an assessee-firm could be proceeded against for recovery of the firm's tax liability under the recovery certificate; (ii) whether the recovery action was barred by limitation.

Issue (i): Whether the individual partner of an assessee-firm could be proceeded against for recovery of the firm's tax liability under the recovery certificate.

Analysis: The earlier decision in the matter had already negatived the broad objection that a partner could never be made liable for the firm's tax dues. In the present certificate, unlike the earlier one, the petitioner's name was specifically mentioned along with the firm. The prior authorities relied upon by the petitioner applied only where the recovery certificate stood solely in the name of the firm and did not name the partner.

Conclusion: The individual partner could be proceeded against, and the objection to liability failed.

Issue (ii): Whether the recovery action was barred by limitation.

Analysis: The recovery certificate for the firm had been issued within time, and the present proceedings were only a continuation of that valid recovery action. On that footing, the subsequent steps taken pursuant to the certificate were not time-barred.

Conclusion: The plea of limitation was rejected.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition failed on both grounds and was dismissed.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a valid recovery certificate against a firm is in force and the partner is specifically named in the certificate, recovery can be pursued against the partner, and continuation of such timely initiated recovery proceedings is not barred by limitation.

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