Abhinaya Constructions Vs State of Tamil Nadu (Madras High Court)
Conclusion: Appellant should pursue the alternate remedy of appeal, even if it involved depositing tax as writ jurisdiction should be exercised only in the absence of an effective alternative remedy.
Held: The challenge in the Writ Petitions was to the order of the State Tax Officer, Divisional Central Investigating Wing – 2 dated 30.08.2023, in and by which, the Officer passed an order under Section 74 of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 determining the tax payable by appellant. The challenge was mainly on the ground that the Officer who had passed the order was not empowered to pass the order, since, he would not fall within the definition of the term ‘Adjudicating Authority’ under Section 2(4) of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017. The writ Court however held that the submission was contrary to the scheme of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, inasmuch as the assessment had to be completed by a Proper Officer and it was open for the Commissioner to designate any such Officer as a Proper Officer as defined under Section 2(91) of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017 and therefore, delegation in terms of Notification No.4 of 2017 issued under Section 5(1) of the Tamil Nadu Goods and Services Tax Act, 2017, appointing Proper Officers was proper and the said submission did not deserve consideration. It was held that once it was found that there was effective alternative remedy, as the matter of self-imposed restriction and judicial discipline, the High Court would have to necessarily direct the parties to invoke such alternative remedy instead of the constitutional remedy. The constitutional remedy at times might prove to be a very ineffective remedy, as the constitutional Courts could not go into the nitty-gritty of the facts and decide on the quantum of tax that was levied or the correctness of the levy. Therefore, the writ Court was justified in refusing to exercise jurisdiction and directing the appellant to avail of the statutory remedy by way of appeal under Section 107.
