Jurisdictional bar on reopening export sales already exempted in CST assessment under the same factual basis

A pre-assessment notice under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act could not reopen export transactions already examined and accepted as exempt in the Central Sales Tax assessment. The CST assessment had relied on export documents and Form H, and had recorded that the sales fell within Section 5(3) of the CST Act. On that basis, a fresh assessment under the State Act on the same facts, based only on a date discrepancy between invoices, was treated as an indirect attempt to disturb a concluded exemption. The Madras HC held the notice without jurisdiction and set it aside.

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Issues: Whether the pre-assessment notice issued under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act for the same export transactions already accepted as exempt in the Central Sales Tax assessment was without jurisdiction.

Analysis: The export sales were examined in the Central Sales Tax assessment and the dealer's explanation, supported by export documents and Form H, was accepted. The assessment order under the Central Sales Tax Act granted exemption for the entire export sales and recorded a finding that the transactions were covered by Form H under Section 5(3) of the Central Sales Tax Act. Having reached that conclusion, the authority could not reopen the very same transactions under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act by relying on the date discrepancy between export invoices and purchase invoices. A fresh assessment on the same factual basis would amount to doing indirectly under the State Act what had already been concluded in the Central Sales Tax assessment.

Conclusion: The impugned pre-assessment notice was without jurisdiction and liable to be set aside.

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