Escaped assessment cannot be reopened under revisional power; reassessment must proceed under the specific statutory provision.

Section 31 of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 specifically authorises reassessment where turnover has escaped assessment or been under-assessed, subject to its own limitation period, while Section 40 confers a separate revisional power limited to examining the legality or propriety of existing proceedings or orders. Because the two provisions operate in different fields, escaped-assessment cases fall within the Assessing Authority's power under Section 31 and not within the Commissioner's revisional jurisdiction under Section 40. Notices issued in a printed form without identifying any specific illegality or impropriety in the assessment orders lacked proper statutory basis. Section 40 was therefore not available for escaped assessment, and the impugned notices and revisional orders were without jurisdiction and invalid.

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Issues: Whether the revisional authority could invoke Section 40 of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 to reopen assessments on the ground of escaped assessment and whether the impugned notices and revision orders were ultra vires.

Analysis: Section 31 of the Act specifically empowers the Assessing Authority to reassess tax where turnover has been under-assessed or has escaped assessment, and the power is subject to a distinct limitation period. Section 40 confers a separate revisional power on the Commissioner to examine the legality or propriety of proceedings or orders already made. The two provisions operate in different fields and use different phraseology, showing legislative intent to vest escaped-assessment cases exclusively in the Assessing Authority and not in the revisional authority. The notices issued under Section 40 disclosed no specific illegality or impropriety in the assessment orders and were issued in a printed form without proper application of mind to the statutory basis for revision.

Conclusion: Section 40 could not be used to deal with escaped assessment, and the notices and revisional orders were without jurisdiction and invalid.

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