Best judgment assessment upheld where records were destroyed; Tribunal's averaging-based turnover estimate tolerated on revision.

Where an assessee failed to produce books of account and primary records said to be destroyed by fire, the authorities applied a best judgment assessment and the Tribunal estimated taxable turnover using available Forms 31, an averaged import value and a gross profit rate; the court accepted that methodology as a factual estimation in the absence of primary records and found no legal error in the Tribunal's reasoning. The assessment and Tribunal determination were therefore upheld on revision and the revision against the assessee was dismissed.

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Issues: Whether the best judgment assessment and the Tribunal's confirmation of taxable turnover (in the absence of books of account and destruction of documents by fire) were justified and liable to be interfered with in revision.

Analysis: The authorities made a best judgment assessment after the dealer failed to produce books of account and other documents which were stated to have been destroyed in a fire; forms relied upon by the assessing authority were not proved to be false or accounted for by documentary evidence; the Tribunal determined turnover by reference to the available Forms 31 and applied an average import value and a gross profit percentage to estimate taxable turnover. The assessment was sustained on appeal and thereafter in revision no new admissible material was produced to demonstrate that the turnover determined by best judgment was unreasonable or arbitrary. The Tribunal's reasoning for applying averaged values and a 17% gross profit to estimate turnover is a factual evaluation upheld in the absence of primary records, and the revision court did not find any legal error warranting interference.

Conclusion: The best judgment assessment and the Tribunal's determination of taxable turnover are upheld; the revision is dismissed against the assessee (decision in favour of the revenue).

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