https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=128355 Power to enter, inspect, seize and retain account books under the U.P. Sales Tax Act was held to be strictly controlled by statute. The officer had no shown authorisation for the search, no disclosed reasonable grounds to believe that any dealer was evading tax, and no statutory basis to seize books from a third party's residence on a mere possibility that they might aid inquiry. The Act also required a receipt to be issued forthwith and the books to be returned within 90 days; that mandatory duty was not met, and neither a request by the petitioner nor an internal communication could displace it. The seizure and continued retention were unlawful, and mandamus was warranted for return of the books. en-us Fri, 08 Sep 1961 00:00:00 +0530 Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:58:06 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=128355 Power to enter, inspect, seize and retain account books under the U.P. Sales Tax Act was held to be strictly controlled by statute. The officer had no shown authorisation for the search, no disclosed reasonable grounds to believe that any dealer was evading tax, and no statutory basis to seize books from a third party's residence on a mere possibility that they might aid inquiry. The Act also required a receipt to be issued forthwith and the books to be returned within 90 days; that mandatory duty was not met, and neither a request by the petitioner nor an internal communication could displace it. The seizure and continued retention were unlawful, and mandamus was warranted for return of the books. Case-Laws VAT and Sales Tax Fri, 08 Sep 1961 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=128355