Bona fide revised return and statutory declaration opportunity bar penalty and justify remand for fresh assessment consideration.

Penalty under section 17(3) was held unsustainable where the dealer acted bona fide, paid tax promptly on the revised return, and disclosed additional turnover once the relevant information became available. The text also states that statutory declarations in Form XII-A, required for concessional assessment, had to be produced at assessment stage, but further opportunity was justified because circumstances following nationalisation of the coal mines affected the assessee's ability to obtain them. The matter was remanded for reconsideration after granting another chance to file the declarations.

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Issues: (i) Whether penalty under section 17(3) could be imposed for the delay in payment of tax and for tax disclosed in a revised return; (ii) whether the dealer had been given reasonable opportunity to furnish declarations in Form XII-A and whether the matter should be remanded for fresh consideration.

Issue (i): Whether penalty under section 17(3) could be imposed for the delay in payment of tax and for tax disclosed in a revised return.

Analysis: The tax on the third return was paid immediately after it became due, and the revised return disclosed additional purchase turnover when the relevant information became available. The dealer's conduct showed bona fides. A dealer is entitled to revise the return and pay the tax due thereon in accordance with the rules. Penalty cannot be sustained merely because tax initially payable with the original return was paid along with the revised return.

Conclusion: The penalty under section 17(3) was not sustainable and was set aside in favour of the assessee.

Issue (ii): Whether the dealer had been given reasonable opportunity to furnish declarations in Form XII-A and whether the matter should be remanded for fresh consideration.

Analysis: Declarations under section 8, read with rule 20, were required to be produced at the stage of assessment. Although several adjournments were granted and time was given for filing the declarations, the circumstances following nationalisation of the coal mines materially affected the assessee's ability to obtain the declarations. In view of those circumstances, further opportunity was considered justified.

Conclusion: The assessee was entitled to another opportunity to file the declarations, and the matter was remanded to the assessing authority for reconsideration.

Final Conclusion: The assessment was disturbed only to the extent of deleting the penalty and directing reconsideration after granting further opportunity to produce Form XII-A declarations.

Ratio Decidendi: Penalty for delay in tax payment is not justified where the dealer acts bona fide and pays tax on a revised return promptly, and a dealer must be afforded a reasonable opportunity to furnish statutory declarations required for concessional assessment when circumstances show genuine difficulty in timely production.

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