Natural justice in VAT reassessment requires consideration of replies, reconciliation statements, and a personal hearing before finalisation.

Assessment orders under the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006 were set aside for breach of natural justice where the assessing authority did not properly consider the assessee's reconciliation statements and replies before finalising the demands. The Court noted that the dispute arose from alleged mismatches in purchase and sales turnover and proposed penalty, and that the reassessment process required due consideration of the material filed by the assessee. As personal hearing was not afforded and the defence material was not examined, the matter was remanded for fresh consideration after giving the assessee an opportunity of hearing.

---

---

Issues: Whether the assessment orders under the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006 were liable to be set aside for violation of natural justice on the ground that the reconciliation statements and replies furnished by the assessee were not properly considered and personal hearing was not afforded.

Analysis: The assessment was founded on alleged mismatches in purchase and sales turnover and on proposed penalty under Section 27(3)(b) of the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006. The assessee had filed preliminary and final replies along with reconciliation statements. Since the dispute involved complicated questions of fact and reassessment on the basis of enforcement wing proposals, the assessing authority was bound to consider the replies and reconciliation material and grant a personal hearing before finalising the assessments.

Conclusion: The assessment orders were held to be vitiated for breach of natural justice and were set aside, with a direction to reconsider the matter afresh after affording personal hearing and examining the replies and reconciliation statement.

---