Detention of goods under Tamil Nadu VAT: release permitted on tax payment under protest, with adjudication left open.

Goods detained under the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act were directed to be released on payment of tax as a one-time payment under protest under Section 67(4) of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006. The Court treated the transaction as comparable to an earlier decision on similar facts and held that release could be granted on that condition. The petitioner was also left exposed to any adjudication proceedings that the respondent may initiate, so the payment under protest did not conclude the underlying tax dispute.

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Issues: Whether the goods detained under the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act could be ordered to be released on payment of tax under protest and whether the detention notice called for interference.

Analysis: The transaction was treated as having similarities with an earlier decision of the Court involving comparable facts. The Court directed that, as a condition precedent for release of the detained goods, the petitioner must pay the tax as a one-time payment under protest in terms of Section 67(4) of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006. It was also made clear that the petitioner would remain liable to face the adjudication proceedings that may be initiated by the respondent.

Conclusion: The goods were directed to be released forthwith on payment of tax under protest, and the writ petition was disposed of accordingly.

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