ALD Automotive Private Limited Vs Sales Tax Officer (Calcutta High Court)
Calcutta High Court has directed the West Bengal Commercial Taxes Appellate and Revisional Board to conduct a fresh review of ALD Automotive Private Limited’s input tax credit (ITC) disallowance under the Value Added Tax (VAT) Act. This order comes after the court heard a writ petition challenging a previous order by the West Bengal Taxation Tribunal, which had upheld the disallowance.
The case originated from a best-of-judgment assessment issued by the assessing authority against ALD Automotive. Subsequent appeals to the first appellate authority and a revisional application to the Fast Track Revisional Authority were largely unsuccessful, leading the company to approach the tribunal. The tribunal dismissed ALD Automotive’s application, stating that the Fast Track Revisional Authority’s order was well-reasoned and did not violate any legal principles.
However, the Calcutta High Court, after hearing arguments from both sides, noted that the core issue revolved around the non-verification of original tax invoices and other relevant documents that could substantiate ALD Automotive ITC claim of Rs. 26,80,672.
During the proceedings before the Fast Track Revisional Authority, a revenue report indicated that the ITC claim could not be verified due to the absence of these original documents. While ALD Automotive claimed to have submitted these documents along with their rebuttal to the verification report, the Revisional Authority’s order contained a seemingly contradictory statement noting the petitioner’s failure to produce the original tax invoices.
