JUDGMENT C. S. P. Singh, J. - The Additional Revising Authority, Sales Tax, Varanasi, has referred the following three questions for our opinion under section 11(1) of the U.P. Sales Tax Act.
(1) Whether under the facts and circumstances of the cases when A.J.R. was satisfied that when there is no objection in the account books declying in turnover can be the basis for the best judgment assessment ?
(2) Whether under the facts and circumstances of the cases when all the purchases and sales are fully vouched the best judgment assessment apply without pointing out any suppression is justified ?
(3) Whether on the facts and circumstances of the cases the learned Revising Authority was justified in partly accepting and partly not accepting the reason for declying of the sale ?
Question No. 1 is unhappily worded and it will be appropriate to reframe this question as under :
Whether the Revising Authority could reject the accounts books of the assessee solely on the ground that there has been a decline in the turnover when no defect has been found in the account books of the assessee ?
2. In M/s. Shambhu Ratan Shailendra Kumar vs. The Commissioner of Sales Tax, U.P., Lucknow (1972 U.P. Tax Cases p-336) it has been that unless some defect is found in the accounts books the book version of the assessee cannot be rejected solely on the ground of that decline in the turnover. We are in respectful agreement with the principle laid down in that case. This being so no question at all arose for making a best judgment assessment.
3. In view of our answer to the first question the other question became academic, and it is not necessary to enter into any answer in respect of these questions.
4. We accordingly answer the first question in the negative, in favour of the assessee and against the Department. The other two questions are returned unanswered. The assessee is entitled to his costs which we assess at Rs. 100/-.