Revisional limitation under sales tax law requires final order within three years; delayed suo motu revision was treated as time-barred.

Section 23(4)(a) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act, read with Rule 80 of the Orissa Sales Tax Rules, was construed to require the Commissioner's suo motu revisional proceedings to end in a final order within three years from the date of the order sought to be revised. The provision was read as a whole, so the three-year limit governed not only the initiation of revision by calling for records but also the completion of the revisional order. A contrary interpretation would allow indefinite pendency and defeat the statutory scheme of limitation and finality. The earlier decision on Section 12(7) was distinguished because it dealt only with reopening, not the time for passing the revisional order.

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Issues: Whether, under Section 23(4)(a) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act read with Rule 80 of the Orissa Sales Tax Rules, the Commissioner's suo motu revisional order had to be passed within three years from the date of the order sought to be revised.

Analysis: The Rule was construed as a whole and not in a disjointed manner. The requirement that the Commissioner may, within three years, call for records and revise an erroneous order was held to indicate that the revisional proceedings must culminate in a final order within the same period. A contrary reading would leave proceedings pending indefinitely, which would defeat the purpose of the limitation scheme and the finality intended by the Rule. The earlier decision dealing with Section 12(7) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act was distinguished because that provision concerned only reopening within a stipulated period and did not address the time for passing the final revisional order.

Conclusion: The suo motu revisional order passed beyond three years was time-barred and liable to be quashed; the writ petition succeeded.

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