Statutory notice under audit assessment is mandatory before invoking summary adjustment powers under the VAT Act.

Section 27 of the Tripura Value Added Tax Act could not be used as a substitute for the statutory audit assessment process, because the Act ties the exercise of special powers to a dealer first being issued notice under Section 24(2). Where that notice was absent, the authorities could not bypass the limitation and procedural safeguards built into audit assessment by making summary adjustments under Section 27. The earlier decision on the same issue had already reached the same legal position, and the impugned notices, consequential orders and demand notices were unsustainable and were set aside.

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Issues: Whether the show cause notices and consequential orders issued under Section 27 of the Tripura Value Added Tax Act were sustainable in the absence of the statutory notice contemplated under Section 24(2) of the Act.

Analysis: Section 27 operates within a distinct scheme of the Act and cannot be invoked as a substitute for the audit assessment framework. The statutory scheme links the exercise of special powers to a dealer who has been issued notice under Section 24(2), and the authorities cannot bypass the limitation and procedural safeguards attached to audit assessment by resorting to summary adjustments under Section 27. The earlier decision on the same legal issue had already held that the impugned orders under Section 27 were unsustainable and that consequent demand notices also fell.

Conclusion: The notices and consequential orders were unsustainable and were set aside.

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