Service of assessment order is essential before tax recovery, interest, or default consequences can validly arise.

Recovery of an alleged tax demand cannot proceed where the assessment order and demand particulars are not traceable or have not been served, because no enforceable demand exists until service. On that basis, recovery notices based on such an unserved demand are unsustainable. Interest and default consequences also cannot be fastened in the absence of service of the assessment order and demand notice, and the assessee cannot be treated as in default until service is effected. The discussion therefore emphasises that valid service of the assessment order and demand particulars is a precondition to recovery action, interest accrual, and default treatment.

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Issues: (i) whether recovery notices for outstanding tax demand could be sustained when the assessment order and corresponding records were not traceable and had not been served; (ii) whether interest and default consequences could be fastened in the absence of service of the assessment order and demand particulars.

Issue (i): whether recovery notices for outstanding tax demand could be sustained when the assessment order and corresponding records were not traceable and had not been served

Analysis: The notices were issued for recovery of an alleged outstanding demand, but the assessment order was not traceable and the respondents ed that the order and corresponding records were unavailable. In the absence of service of the assessment order and particulars of the demand, no enforceable demand could be said to exist and recovery action could not validly be initiated.

Conclusion: The recovery notices could not be sustained and were liable to be set aside.

Issue (ii): whether interest and default consequences could be fastened in the absence of service of the assessment order and demand particulars

Analysis: Liability to interest and the treatment of the assessee as being in default depended upon service of the assessment order and the demand notice. Without such service, the assessee could not be saddled with interest upto the date of service, nor could default consequences be imposed.

Conclusion: Interest could not be fastened and the assessee could not be treated as an assessee in default until service of the assessment order, if any.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded, the impugned recovery notices were quashed, and the demand was directed to be removed from the petitioner's portal record.

Ratio Decidendi: Recovery of tax demand and consequential interest cannot proceed unless the assessment order and demand particulars are served, because without such service no enforceable demand exists and default consequences cannot be imposed.

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