Commissioner of Trade Tax vs Shiv Shanker Murti Foundry

R.K. Agrawal, J.—The Commissioner of Trade Tax, U.P,, Lucknow, feeling aggrieved by the order dated May 16, 1998 passed by the Trade Tax Tribunal Bench-II, Aligarh, in Second Appeal No. 85 of 1997 (assessment year 1994-95, U.P.) has filed the present revision u/s 11 of the U.P. Trade Tax Act.

The facts of the case in brief are that the assessee-opposite party is a registered dealer under the provisions of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, and is engaged in the business of manufacture and sale of idols made of brass. The assessee admitted its tax liability at the rate of 8 per cent plus surcharge of 2 per cent treating it to be taxable as unclassified goods. However, the assessing authority held it to be taxable under the entry of art brassware under Notification No. ST-II-2152/X dated October 26, 1991. The imposition of tax at the rate of 10 per cent plus surcharge of 2.5 per cent has been upheld by the Tribunal. However, it has deleted the levy of interest by holding that the assessee was bona fidely disputing its liability to pay tax at the rate of 10 per cent plus 2.5 per cent surcharge.

Having heard the learned counsel for the parties, I find that in the present case the assessee was bona fidely disputing its liability to tax on the sale of brass idols under the entry of art brasswares since very beginning. Thus, in view of the decision of the honourable Supreme Court in the case of Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Hindustan Aluminium Corporation reported in [2002] 127 STC 258 ; 1999 UPTC 1, the amount of tax cannot be said to be admitted tax u/s 8(1) of the Act and, therefore, the interest has rightly been deleted. I do not find any infirmity in the order of the Tribunal.

The revision lacks merit and is dismissed in limine.