No Penalty for Interstate Purchase Misclassification Without Intent to Evade Tax: Madras HC

State of Tamil Nadu Vs Tvl. M. P. Natarajan and Company (Madras High Court) The Madras High Court dismissed the State’s appeal challenging the concurrent findings of the Appellate Authority and the Tribunal, which had deleted the penalty imposed on the assessee under Section 16(2) of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act. The Department contended that, during an Enforcement Wing inspection for the Assessment Year 2001-02, interstate purchases had been wrongly accounted for as second sales to avoid tax, resulting in tax and penalty of ₹35,98,171. The Appellate Authority, relying on the M...