Writ appeals admitted for detailed hearings with interim relief granted; deposit requirements outlined

The court admitted the writ appeals for detailed hearings after finding that the appellants presented an arguable case. Interim relief was granted with specific conditions, including allowing ongoing assessment proceedings to continue, subject to the final decision in the appeals, and requiring a deposit of 20% of the total outstanding demand by the appellants for cases involving recovery of tax or penalties. Payment deposit requirements were outlined, with deadlines for installment payments for finalized proceedings and provisions for future demand, collection, or recovery steps. Appellants were given the option to pay amounts due under the State Government's Amnesty Scheme independently of the ongoing writ appeals.

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Issues:
1. Admission of writ appeals
2. Interim relief regarding tax assessments and penalties
3. Conditions for interim stay on tax proceedings
4. Payment deposit requirements for appellants

Analysis:
The judgment pertains to multiple writ appeals arising from a common judgment in a specific case. The learned Senior Counsel and other counsels representing the appellants were heard on the question of admission. After considering the arguments, the court found that the appellants have presented an arguable case, leading to the admission of the writ appeals for elaborate hearings. The State Government was represented by the Additional Advocate General and the Special Government Pleader (Taxes) who made submissions during the proceedings.

Regarding interim relief, the court acknowledged that the challenged steps under the Kerala Value Added Tax Act were at various stages such as proposals, assessments, and collections. Recognizing the constitutional validity challenge against these proceedings, the court decided to grant an interim stay with specific conditions until the final disposal of the writ appeals. The conditions for the interim stay included allowing ongoing assessment proceedings to continue, subject to the final decision in the appeals, and requiring a deposit of 20% of the total outstanding demand by the appellants for cases involving recovery of tax or penalties.

Furthermore, the court outlined the payment deposit requirements for the appellants, specifying that the deposit should be made in two installments for finalized proceedings, with deadlines for each installment. For future demand, collection, or recovery steps, the stay would be effective upon making the deposit within a month of receiving the relevant notices. Additionally, the appellants were granted the option to pay the amounts due under the State Government's Amnesty Scheme independently of the ongoing writ appeals, with any payments made under the interim order being credited towards the Amnesty Scheme obligations.

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