Statutory pre-deposit requirement upheld where no perversity was shown in refusal to waive compliance fully.

The Punjab and Haryana HC considered whether dismissal of an assessee's appeal for non-compliance with the statutory pre-deposit requirement under the Punjab Value Added Tax Act was justified. It noted that the first appellate authority had exercised discretion by limiting the pre-deposit to 25% of the tax demand and by refusing a complete waiver, and that the Tribunal found no financial hardship warranting fuller relief. As no illegality or perversity in those findings was shown, the dismissal for non-deposit was upheld and no substantial question of law was found to arise.

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Issues: Whether the Tribunal was justified in dismissing the assessee's appeal for non-compliance with the pre-deposit requirement under section 62(5) of the Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2005, and whether any substantial question of law arose from the order.

Analysis: The assessment was amended under section 29(7) of the Punjab Value Added Tax Act, 2005, resulting in an additional demand. The first appellate authority declined to waive the statutory pre-deposit and directed deposit of 25% of the tax demand. The Tribunal found that the case did not warrant fuller protection from compliance with section 62(5), that the appellant's financial condition did not justify complete waiver, and that the authority had already exercised discretion by limiting the pre-deposit to tax alone instead of the entire demand including penalty and interest. No illegality or perversity in those findings was shown.

Conclusion: The dismissal of the appeal for non-deposit of the required pre-deposit was upheld, and no substantial question of law was found to arise.

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