Judicial compliance in revision proceedings requires a reasoned decision on maintainability before reassessment can continue.
Where an authority is bound by an earlier judicial direction to decide pending revision petitions with reasons, a later notice that merely repeats non-entertainability without substantive compliance is liable to be quashed. The court also directed that reassessment could not continue until the revision petitions were heard and disposed of on merits, including the objection on limitation. Pending reassessment proceedings were therefore kept in abeyance, preserving the taxpayer's right to have preliminary objections adjudicated before further substantive action was taken.
Issues: (i) Whether the notice dated 03.06.2010 issued by the revenue was liable to be interfered with for non-compliance with the earlier direction requiring the revision petitions to be considered and disposed of in accordance with law. (ii) Whether the petitioner was entitled to have the revision petitions heard on merits, including the objection based on limitation, before the reassessment proceedings pursuant to the remand order were continued.
Issue (i): Whether the notice dated 03.06.2010 issued by the revenue was liable to be interfered with for non-compliance with the earlier direction requiring the revision petitions to be considered and disposed of in accordance with law.
Analysis: The earlier judicial direction required the authority to decide the revision petitions one way or the other and, if they were found not maintainable, to record reasons in writing; if maintainable, the stay application had to be considered on merits. The subsequent communication merely repeated the earlier stand that the revision petitions were not entertainable against a notice and did not reflect compliance with the earlier mandate in substance. The Court also noted that the reassessment process could not be pushed ahead without first dealing with the pending revision petitions in the manner already directed.
Conclusion: The notice dated 03.06.2010 was quashed, and the revenue was required to comply with the earlier direction before proceeding further.
Issue (ii): Whether the petitioner was entitled to have the revision petitions heard on merits, including the objection based on limitation, before the reassessment proceedings pursuant to the remand order were continued.
Analysis: The disputes related to the assessment years 1999-2000 and 2000-2001, and the petitioner had specifically raised limitation and maintainability objections. The Court directed that the revision petitions be disposed of after hearing the petitioner, that the reassessment proceedings remain in abeyance in the meantime, and that if the revision petitions failed, the assessment proceedings could then be completed within a fixed time. This preserved the petitioner's right to have the preliminary objections adjudicated before substantive reassessment continued.
Conclusion: The petitioner was entitled to a hearing and decision on the revision petitions, including the plea of limitation, before reassessment could proceed.
Final Conclusion: The writ petitions were disposed of with directions that protected the petitioner from further reassessment steps until the pending revision petitions were decided on merits, while also permitting the revenue to proceed thereafter if the petitioner failed before the revisional authority.
Ratio Decidendi: Where an authority is bound by an earlier judicial direction to decide a pending revision or objection with reasons, a subsequent notice that merely reiterates non-entertainability without real compliance can be quashed, and further proceedings must await disposal of the pending challenge on merits.
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