1961 (10) TMI 56

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....rivate limited company carrying on business as a building contractor. The company entered into certain works contracts with the State of Orissa for construction of buildings, dams and excavation of spillways etc. The company was registered as a dealer under the Orissa Sales Tax Act, 1947, from the quarters ending June 30, 1949. On the footing that the material used in the construction of buildings, dams etc. was sold to the State, the Sales Tax Officer, Cuttack, made a consolidated assess- ment on April 7, 1954, and directed the appellant to pay Rs. 1,30,000 as sales tax. This amount was realised by deducting it out of the outstanding bills of the company and not by taking any coercive process for recovery. Relying upon the judgment of the ....

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....ling of this application shall be refunded on proper application, according to law." It is common ground before this court that tax under the Orissa Sales Tax Act was not leviable in respect of works contracts executed by the company. That was also conceded before the High Court, and an order declaring that assessment of sales tax in respect of building or works contract was invalid was made. This appeal filed with special leave is directed only against that direction relating to the refund of the amount of tax collected from the company under orders of assess- ment made more than 24 months before the date of the petition in the High Court. Section 14 of the Orissa Sales Tax Act provides: "14. The Collector shall, in the prescribed ma....

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....training the State from levying sales tax in respect of a contract of construction of building was passed on July 27, 1954. No process for recovery of tax was adopted by the State since the date of the assessment, and the State sought merely to adjust liability for payment of sales tax against outstanding bills. Section 14 of the Act has no application to adjustments of account made by the State, without the assent of the company, and there is no evidence that the adjustments were assented to by the company. The company did claim a direction declaring that the State of Orissa was not entitled to levy sales tax in respect of building and works contracts executed by it. This relief the company is entitled to. In our view, justice of the case ....