Time-bar on reassessment after remand led to deemed assessment and refund of excess tax paid.

A reassessment made after remand was held time-barred because Section 18(1) of the Haryana Value Added Tax Act, 2003 requires effect-giving assessment or reassessment to be completed within two years of receipt of the remand order by the assessing authority. Since the remand order was received on 10.12.2013 and the reassessment was completed only on 29.12.2016, the assessment could not be sustained. The return filed on 25.11.2010 was therefore treated as a deemed assessment under Section 15(1), and the excess tax collected from the assessee was refundable.

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Issues: Whether the assessment order passed after remand was barred by limitation under the Haryana Value Added Tax Act, 2003, and whether the assessee was entitled to refund of the excess tax deposited for the assessment year 2009-10 on the basis of deemed assessment.

Analysis: The original ex parte assessment was set aside in appeal and the matter was remanded for denovo assessment. Under Section 18(1) of the Haryana Value Added Tax Act, 2003, assessment or reassessment to give effect to an order of an authority must be completed within two years of receipt of the order by the assessing authority. The remand order was received on 10.12.2013, but the reassessment was made only on 29.12.2016, well beyond the statutory period. In these circumstances, the assessment could not be sustained, and the return filed on 25.11.2010 had to be treated as a deemed assessment under Section 15(1) of the Act. On that basis, the excess amount collected from the assessee was refundable.

Conclusion: The reassessment was time-barred and the assessee was entitled to refund of Rs. 30,42,838/-.

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