Binding government clarification barred enforcement of withdrawn additional sales tax for uncollected periods.

Additional sales tax introduced for a brief period under the Orissa Additional Sales Tax Ordinance, 1995 could not be enforced against dealers where the tax had not already been collected, after the Government withdrew the levy and directed non-enforcement in such cases. The Finance Department's clarification was binding on the State, and retrospective insistence on collection would have defeated the policy that voluntarily collected tax would not be refunded while uncollected tax would not be pursued. The Tribunal erred in requiring enforcement despite that instruction, and the orders enforcing the levy were set aside.

---

---

Issues: Whether the State could enforce additional sales tax for the period when the Orissa Additional Sales Tax Ordinance, 1995 was in force despite its later withdrawal and the Government's instruction not to enforce collection where the tax had not already been collected.

Analysis: The levy was introduced as an indirect tax for a very short period, and the Government subsequently clarified that additional sales tax already collected and voluntarily paid would not be refunded, but collection would not be enforced for the relevant period where it had not been collected. Since sales tax is ordinarily passed on to the consumer, retrospective enforcement after withdrawal would defeat the Government's own policy decision. The instruction issued by the Finance Department was binding on the Government, and it was impermissible for the State to disregard its own clarification and insist on enforcement of the levy.

Conclusion: The Tribunal was not justified in holding that the Ordinance had to be enforced notwithstanding the Government's instruction. The orders enforcing the additional sales tax were set aside in favour of the assessee.

Final Conclusion: The demand under the withdrawn additional sales tax regime could not be enforced against the dealer for the relevant period where tax had not been collected, and the revision succeeded.

---