TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1993 (1) TMI 262
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....hly payment of Central sales tax from April, 1980, and since then, it made payments of Central sales tax quarterly up to November, 1981. However, from December, 1981, the applicant started making monthly payments even in so far as the Central sales tax was concerned. Before the Gujarat Sales Tax Tribunal and the sales tax authority, the disputed contentions, therefore, were: (i) whether the applicant was required to make monthly payment in so far as the Central sales tax is concerned ? and (ii) whether the applicant would be liable to pay interest as provided under section 47(4A) of the Sales Tax Act read with section 9(2) of the Central Act for the delayed payment of Central sales tax? It is the contention of the applicant that under rule 5 of the Central Sales Tax (Gujarat) Rules, 1970, the Central sales tax is required to be paid quarterly and, therefore, it was not obligatory on the applicant to make monthly payment of such tax as provided in rule 31(1A) of the Gujarat Sales Tax Rules, 1970. It was also contended that, even if there is delay in payment of sales tax, the applicant would not be required to pay interest as provided under section 47(4A) of the Sales Tax Act. I....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... the parties. On that basis, the Tribunal modified the order passed by the sales tax authorities. It directed that the figures of the amount of interest in question as levied by the Sales Tax Officer should be modified by the concerned Sales Tax Officer so as to bring them in conformity with the figures submitted by the applicant as per the two appendices marked as "A" and "B" appended to the judgment and the interest in question should be levied in accordance with the figures of tax given in column 3 of the said appendices instead of column 4. Against the aforesaid judgment and order passed by the Gujarat Sales Tax Tribunal in Second Appeals Nos. 189 and 190 of 1982 decided on March 30, 1984, the applicant preferred an application before the Tribunal for making a reference to this Court. After considering various contentions raised by the applicant, the Gujarat Sales Tax Tribunal has referred the following questions for our decision under section 69 of the Gujarat Sales Tax Act, 1969 (hereinafter referred to as "the Sales Tax Act"). 1.. Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Tribunal was right in law in holding that the applicant was liable to pay intere....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ing empowered to assess, reassess, collect and enforce payment of any tax under the general sales tax law of the appropriate State shall, on behalf of the Government of India, assess, reassess, collect and enforce payment of tax, including any penalty, payable by a dealer under this Act as if the tax or penalty payable by such a dealer under this Act is a tax or penalty payable under the general sales tax law of the State; and for this purpose they may exercise all or any of the powers they have under the general sales tax law of the State; and the provisions of such law, including provisions relating to returns, provisional assessment, advance payment of tax, registration of the transferee of any business, imposition of the tax liability of a person carrying on business on the transferee of, or successor to, such business, transfer of liability of any firm or Hindu undivided family to pay tax in the event of the dissolution of such firm or partition of such family, recovery of tax from third parties, appeals, reviews, revisions, references, refunds, rebates, penalties, charging or payment of interest, compounding of offences and treatment of documents furnished by a dealer as conf....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....t, at the rate of twenty-four per cent per annum on the amount of tax not so paid or on any less amount thereof remaining unpaid during such period." Further, period or interval, during which the tax is required to be paid, is prescribed by rule 31 of the Gujarat Sales Tax Rules, 1970. Sub-rule (1) of rule 31 provides that every dealer to whom sub-rule (1A) does not apply and who is required to furnish the monthly or quarterly returns or declarations shall within a period of one month and seven days immediately succeeding the month or quarter for which any such return or declaration is required to be furnished pay into the Government Treasury the tax due and payable in such month or quarter along with the amount of any interest payable by him under sub-section (4A) of section 47. He is also required to submit to the Sales Tax Officer one copy of the receipted challan in form 33 along with the returns. For our purpose, the relevant provision is sub-rule (1A)(a) of rule 31, which is as under: "(1A)(a) Every dealer, who is required to furnish quarterly return or as the case may be declaration and in whose case, the total amount of tax payable by him, for all the places of business ....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....r the applicant has relied upon rule 11 of the Central Sales Tax (Registration and Turnover) Rules, 1957 and rule 5 of the Central Sales Tax (Gujarat) Rules, 1970, for contending that the applicant is required to pay sales tax as per the said rules and, therefore, is not required to make monthly payment of tax. Rule 11 of the Central Sales Tax (Registration and Turnover) Rules, 1957, deals with determination of turnover and the period of turnover in relation to any dealer liable to pay tax under the Central Act. It reads as under: "11(1). The period of turnover in relation to any dealer liable to pay tax under this Act shall be the same as the period in respect of which he is liable to submit returns under the general sales tax law of the appropriate State: Provided that in relation to a dealer who is not liable to submit returns under the general sales tax law of the appropriate State, the period of turnover shall be a quarter ending on the 30th June, 30th September, 31st December and 31st March, as the case may be, in a financial year." Admittedly, the proviso to sub-rule (1) of rule 11 is not applicable in the present case. Therefore, as per this rule, the period of turnove....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... sales tax due and payable is required to be paid. The mode of payment of tax due is not provided. The mode of making payment of tax due is specifically provided only under the Gujarat Sales Tax Rules, 1970 and, as stated earlier, the said Rules would be applicable in view of section 9(2) of the Central Act for the purposes of collection, assessment and payment of tax and charging or payment of interest. Further, it should be noted that sub-rule (1A)(a) of rule 31 of the Gujarat Sales Tax Rules carves out an exception with regard to a dealer, in whose case total amount of tax payable by him in the previous year exceeds twenty-five thousand rupees and that he is required to pay the amount of sales tax on monthly basis as per the mode provided therein. With regard to those dealers, in whose cases, the total amount of tax payable by them in the previous year is less than twenty-five thousand rupees, they are not required to pay sales tax on monthly basis even though they are required to furnish quarterly returns. Considering the aforesaid aspect, it is apparent that there is no conflict between rule 5 of the Central Sales Tax (Gujarat) Rules, 1970 and rule 31(1A)(a) of the Gujarat Sa....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....in the affirmative in favour of the Revenue and against the assessee. Re: Questions Nos. 2, 3 and 4: These questions do not require elaborate discussion, because, it is wellestablished that, with regard to arrears of sales tax, accrual of interest is automatic and arises by operation of law. No separate notice of demand is required to be served in that respect. Usual interest becomes payable if the arrears of sales tax remained unpaid within the prescribed period during which the tax is required to be paid. It is a matter of mere arithmetical calculation to arrive at the figure of interest. The amount of tax on which interest is to accrue, the rate of interest, the date from which interest is to commence and the date up to which interest is to be counted are all known. For this purpose, the Tribunal rightly referred to the decisions of the Supreme Court in the cases of Haji Lal Mohd. Biri Works [1973] 32 STC 496 and Associated Cement Co. Ltd. [1981] 48 STC 466. It should be noted that the aforesaid decisions are relied upon by the Supreme Court in the case of Prahlad Rai v. Sales Tax Officer, reported in [1992] 84 STC 375. In this view of the matter, questions Nos. 2, 3 and 4 are....