Court overturns tax demand by AVATO, orders refund with interest. Unlawful actions found.

The court set aside the impugned order by the AVATO raising a tax demand under the DVAT Act and CST Act, directing a refund with interest to be credited to the petitioner within four weeks. The AVATO's actions were deemed unlawful, lacking clarity on the cancellation date of 'C' forms and conducting a fresh enquiry without notice. The petitioner's liability was increased unjustly, leading to the court allowing the writ petition and disposing of pending applications without costs.

---

---

Issues:
1. Challenge to order raising tax demand under DVAT Act and CST Act
2. Failure to grant refund despite previous court order
3. Fresh enquiry leading to tax demand based on cancelled 'C' forms
4. Legality of exercising powers under Section 74(B)(5) DVAT Act without notice

Analysis:
1. The petitioner challenged an order by the AVATO raising a tax demand of Rs. 1,23,13,745 for 2016 under DVAT Act and CST Act. The AVATO initially assessed the tax as nil due to a refund case involving mobile phones and accessories. Despite a court order directing a refund, the AVATO initiated a fresh enquiry with Haryana Authority, leading to the tax demand based on cancelled 'C' forms.

2. The AVATO's actions were questioned as no counter affidavit was filed, and coercive steps were stayed. The impugned order lacked clarity on the cancellation date of 'C' forms issued to the Haryana dealer. The cancellation, due to the dealer migrating to GST and being a tax defaulter, raised concerns on the petitioner's increased liability unjustly.

3. The AVATO's review of the assessment order without issuing a show cause notice was deemed unlawful, as highlighted in a previous judgment. Consequently, the impugned order dated 15th December 2017 was set aside, and the refund with interest was directed to be credited to the petitioner within four weeks. The writ petition was allowed, and pending applications were disposed of without costs.

---