TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1990 (3) TMI 355
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....the partners. The assessing authority vide its order dated September 27, 1979 rejected the return of the petitioners and enhanced and determined their taxable turnover on "best judgment basis" at Rs. 2 lakhs and further imposed a penalty of Rs. 5,000 under section 17(b) of the Jammu and Kashmir General Sales Tax Act and further penalty of Rs. 2,000 under section 17(c) of the said Act. In appeal, however, Deputy Commissioner, Sales Tax, vide order dated January 30, 1980 reduced the taxable amount to Rs. 1,78,042 and further reduced the amount of penalty from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 2,000 and Rs. 2,000 to Rs. 1,500. The petitioners then filed revision before the Commissioner, Sales Tax, who vide order dated January 7, 1981 while maintaining the orde....
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....ily determining the turnover to an exorbitant self-conceived figure of Rs. 2 lakhs and assessed the sales tax at the rate of 8 per cent thereon thereby penalising them. Respondent No. 1 also imposed penalty under section 17(b) and under section 17(c) without any speaking order. According to them there is no provision of law to allow exercise of unfettered discretionary powers to assume the turnover of sales tax at any irrational and arbitrary figures without mentioning any criteria envisaged in law and this resort on the part of any authority is highly negatory to the well-settled principle of law. That discretionary powers can only be exercised in strict consonance with law and not capriciously. Counter to this petition has not been fil....
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....ny evidence or upon a view of the facts which could not reasonably be entertained or the facts found are such that no person acting judicially and properly instructed as to the relevant law would have come to the determination in question. Their Lordships of the Supreme Court in [1976] 105 ITR 212 (Commissioner of Income-tax, West Bengal v. Simon Carves Ltd.), while dealing with such law have come to the conclusion that the taxing authorities exercised quasi-judicial powers and in doing so they must act in a fair and not a partisan manner, and although it is a part of their duty to ensure that no tax which is legitimately due from an assessee should remain unrecovered, they must also at the same time not act in a manner as might indicate....
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....locality where the shop in question of the petitioners was located and in fact those were rejected without affording opportunity to the petitioners to establish the same. It also appears from record that prior to passing an assessment order the Assessing Authority, Sales Tax, deputed two inspectors of the department Sh. Balraj Sharma and another to ascertain the actual facts and to submit report and both the inspectors made the following report: "Sub: Copy of Inspector's report on June 16 on accounting year 1975-76 in case of M/s. A.K. Shoe Co., Purani Mandi, Jammu. Sir, The case history of M/s. A.K. Shoe Co., Purani Mandi, Jammu, reveales that an open auction of the shoes was made during the accounting year 1975-76. The proprietors o....