https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=436122 Penalty under the Orissa Entry Tax Act cannot be sustained where the books of account were accepted, no adverse material was found, and the only defect was non-maintenance of a stock register for some goods. Mere absence of a stock register, by itself, is insufficient to reject accounts or justify best judgment assessment. Penalty in tax law is not automatic and ordinarily requires a wilful or contumacious breach, which was not shown here. The record also did not establish proper initiation of proceedings or compliance with the notice and opportunity requirements. On that basis, both the best judgment assessment and the penalty were held unsustainable in favour of the assessee. en-us Wed, 22 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0530 Wed, 05 Apr 2023 08:58:31 +0530 TaxTMI RSS Generator https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=436122 Penalty under the Orissa Entry Tax Act cannot be sustained where the books of account were accepted, no adverse material was found, and the only defect was non-maintenance of a stock register for some goods. Mere absence of a stock register, by itself, is insufficient to reject accounts or justify best judgment assessment. Penalty in tax law is not automatic and ordinarily requires a wilful or contumacious breach, which was not shown here. The record also did not establish proper initiation of proceedings or compliance with the notice and opportunity requirements. On that basis, both the best judgment assessment and the penalty were held unsustainable in favour of the assessee. Case-Laws VAT and Sales Tax Wed, 22 Mar 2023 00:00:00 +0530 https://www.taxtmi.com/caselaws?id=436122