High Court of Madras recently held that after the issue of certificate of settlement then the same assessment cannot be revised under the provisions of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act.
Assessee in the instant case was filed an appeal before the CIT (A) on dispute of the tax liability relating to sales tax, luxury tax and entertainment tax. At the same time the Government of Tamil Nadu passed a settlement act 1999 which provide for expeditious enforcement of payment of arrear tax, penalty or interest in dispute under the relevant Act, relating to sales tax, entertainment tax etc. by way of settlement of such dispute on a one time basis. Thereafter the assessee withdrew it’s appeal before the CIT (A) and filed a Form I declaration in terms of Section 5(1) of the Settlement Act requesting for settlement of their case for the assessment year. As per the request of the assessee the case been settled and a certificate of settlement was issued by the designated authority.
Four years later, the Commercial Tax Officer has issued a notice to the assessee to re-open the same assessment on the ground that there was some computation error in the said assessment. The present issue is whether it is possible to a re-assessment after the issue of certificate of settlement.
Allowing the petition, Justice T.S.Sivagnanam has declared that under section 9 of the act is to the effect that a certificate of settlement issued under Section 8(1) of the act shall be conclusive as to the dispute to which it relates to, and no matter covered by such certificate of settlement shall be reopened in any proceedings of review or revision, or in any other proceeding, under the relevant Act. The Court noted that the petitioner’s case was settled under settlement act and re-opening the same is invoking Section 55 of the TNGST Act is wholly without jurisdiction. The Court was of the view that re-assessment cannot be made after the issue of certificate of settlement.
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