Certificate under s 68(2) of Finance Act, 1997 cannot be issued if the assessee fails to deposit tax within the stipulated period provided under the VDIS Scheme

High Court of Gujarat

Special Civil Application No. 3283 of 2001

Harsha Devani and H B Antani, JJ

Decided on: 4 March 2011

Counsel appeared:

Mr Manish J Shah for the appellant

Mrs Mauna M Bhatt for the respondent

Judgement

Per: Harsha Devani, J:

1.  By this petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the petitioner has challenged the communication dated 5.10.1998 (Exhibit-B to the petition), whereby the petitioner has been informed that since he has not paid the tax as required under section 67(1) of the Finance Act, 1997 (the Act) in respect of the Voluntary Disclosure of Income within the stipulated time, his declaration furnished under section 65(1) of the Act, is treated as being never to have been filed under the Scheme and refusing to issue the certificate under section 68(2) of the Act.

2.  The petitioner filed a declaration on 22.12.1997, disclosing income of Rs.4,74,584/- for assessment years 1969-70, 1989-90 and 1990-91. Under section 64 of the Act, the declaration in accordance with the provisions of section 65 was required to be filed on or before 31.12.1997. Section 65 of the Act made provision for the particulars to be furnished in the declaration. Section 66 of the Act which prescribed the time for payment of tax under the Scheme laid down that the tax payable under the Scheme in respect of the voluntarily disclosed income shall be paid by the declarant and the declaration shall be accompanied by proof of such tax. Section 67 of the Act, however, laid down that notwithstanding anything contained in section 66, the declarant may file a declaration without the tax under that section and may file the declaration and may pay the tax within three months from the date of filing of the declaration with simple interest at the rate of two percent for every month or part of a month comprised in the period beginning from the date of filing the declaration and ending on the date of payment of such tax and file the proof of such payment within the said period of three months. It is the case of the petitioner that under a wrong impression that such delayed payment could be made upto 3 1.3.1998, he made payment of tax and interest on 27.3.1998. Thus, there was a delay of four days though interest for this delay at the rate of 2% per month had already been paid.