Ex parte VAT assessment set aside for lack of effective hearing, with Form C to be considered on remand.

Service of notice by e-mail under the Bihar VAT Rules was technically valid, but the Court found no material of deliberate avoidance and held that the assessee was denied a proper opportunity of hearing. Because the ex parte assessment prevented production of Form C, and the appellate remedy did not cure that prejudice, the Court treated the matter as fit for reconsideration on merits. The ex parte assessment orders and demand notices were quashed, and the cases were remitted to the assessing authority for fresh decision after giving due hearing and considering Form C.

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Issues: Whether the ex parte assessment orders, passed after service of notice by e-mail under the Rules, should be quashed and the matters remitted for fresh consideration in view of the petitioner's inability to produce Form C and the need for due opportunity of hearing.

Analysis: Notice was served by e-mail in accordance with rule 50(1)(d) of the Bihar Value Added Tax Rules, 2005, but there was no physical service and no material showing deliberate avoidance by the petitioner. The Court accepted that the omission to check e-mail was not shown to be a conscious default intended to evade service, and therefore the denial of participation in the assessment proceeding was not justified on the facts. The statutory scheme recognizes the assessee's right of representation before assessment, and the appellate remedy under section 75 of the Bihar Value Added Tax Act, 2005 does not answer the prejudice caused by the ex parte order where Form C was already available but could not be produced because of the absence of hearing. The Court also relied on the principle that Form C may be considered even at a later stage where justice so requires, and treated the present case as fit for reconsideration on merits by the assessing authority.

Conclusion: The ex parte assessment orders and demand notices were quashed, and the matters were remitted to the assessing authority for fresh decision after giving due opportunity of hearing and consideration of Form C.

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