Manufacturer fined Rs. 2000 for liquor goods release. Compliance required for immediate release. Revised compounding notice issued.

The court directed the petitioner, a manufacturer of liquor, to pay a fine of Rs. 2000 for the release of goods and submit necessary documents. Upon compliance, the goods would be released immediately. A revised compounding notice was issued, and the petitioner was allowed to address it in accordance with the law. The writ petition was disposed of with these directions, and no costs were imposed.

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Issues:
Challenge to impugned proceedings of the 1st respondent in Goods Detention Notice, Non-production of transit pass and copies of invoices during goods transportation, Arbitrary and illegal detention of goods, Opportunity of hearing not provided to petitioner, Failure to generate E-Transit pass, Tax liability in Tamilnadu, Direction to pay fine for release of goods, Revised compounding notice issued.

Analysis:
The petitioner, a manufacturer of liquor, challenged the impugned proceedings of the 1st respondent regarding the detention of goods due to non-production of transit pass and copies of invoices during transportation. The petitioner contended that apart from the technical violation of not generating the transit pass, there was no suspicion regarding the genuineness of the accompanying documents. The petitioner argued that the detention notice was arbitrary and illegal.

The petitioner's counsel argued that if an inquiry had been conducted and an opportunity for a hearing provided, the petitioner could have effectively represented its case. It was also contended that the failure to generate an E-Transit pass should not lead to the imposition of tax by deeming the goods to have been sold in Tamilnadu. The Additional Government Pleader, on instructions, stated that if the petitioner could provide relevant papers to correlate the entries at the outer check post and prove that the goods were being taken outside the state, a fine of Rs. 2000 would be levied for lapses.

The court directed the petitioner to pay a fine of Rs. 2000 for the release of goods and submit necessary documents. Upon payment of the fine and submission of required documents, the goods would be released immediately. It was also noted that a revised compounding notice had been issued, allowing the petitioner to address it in accordance with the law. The writ petition was disposed of with the above directions, and no costs were imposed. The connected M.P.No.1 of 2015 was closed as a result of the judgment.

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