Sabka Vishwas discharge certificate claim upheld after admitted form error and respondents accepted no further tax liability.

Under the Sabka Vishwas Legacy Disputes Resolution Scheme, 2019, an apparent error in the committee-issued form incorrectly showed a balance service tax liability despite the tax already paid having been accepted. The respondents later filed a counter-affidavit accepting the petitioner's stand and stating that no further tax was payable in relation to the proceedings. As that admission removed any surviving dispute, the Madras HC held that the petitioner was entitled to the discharge certificate sought under the scheme.

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Issues: Whether the writ petitioner was entitled to a discharge certificate under the Sabka Vishwas Legacy Disputes Resolution Scheme, 2019 in view of the admitted error in the form issued by the designated committee and the respondents' acceptance of the petitioner's case.

Analysis: The dispute related to service tax under the legacy dispute resolution scheme. The petitioner pointed out that the amount of tax already paid had been accepted, while the relief computation in the issued forms contained an apparent error, resulting in an incorrect showing of balance tax liability. The respondents subsequently filed a counter-affidavit accepting the petitioner's stand and stating that the petitioner was not required to pay the tax that had triggered the proceedings. In view of this unequivocal acceptance, no controversy survived for adjudication.

Conclusion: The petitioner was held entitled to the discharge certificate sought under the scheme.

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