Bombay High Court
Britex Engineering Works vs The Cess Officer And Ors on 4 September, 2025
Author: G. S. Kulkarni
Bench: G. S. Kulkarni
Digitally
signed by
PRASHANT
PRASHANT VILAS
VILAS RANE 7-8-.DOC
RANE Date:
2025.09.10
15:19:08
+0530
IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION NO. 13805 OF 2023
Britex Engineering Works ...Petitioner
Vs
The Cess Officer & others. ...Respondents
AND
WRIT PETITION NO. 13815 OF 2023
Britex Engineering Works ...Petitioner
Vs
The Cess Officer & others. ...Respondents
__________
Mr. Dharan Gandhi with Aanchal Vyas, for Petitioner
Mr. Tejesh Dande with Mr. Bharat Gadhavi, for Respondent Nos.1 and 2.
Dr. Dhruti Kapadia, AGP for State.
__________
CORAM: G. S. KULKARNI &
MANJUSHA DESHPANDE, JJ.
DATE: 4 SEPTEMBER 2025.
P.C.
1. Let reply affidavit to this petition be placed on record by 10 September 2025. List the proceedings on 11 September 2025 (HOB).
2. The basic issue which arises for consideration is whether the Designated Officer of the Municipal Corporation at all had jurisdiction under Rule 25(5) of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporation (Cess on Entry of Goods) Rules, 1996 to pass the impugned order after a period of about 11 years from the assessment year in question. The reason being that the Rule itself provides that if a registered dealer does not furnish any or all of the returns in respect of any period on or before the date prescribed for the last return pertaining to that period, then Page 1 of 2 04/09/2025 P. V. Rane ::: Uploaded on - 10/09/2025 ::: Downloaded on - 12/09/2025 22:51:10 ::: 7-8-.DOC the Commissioner shall, at any time within three years from the end of the year in which such period occurs, proceed to assess, to the best of his judgment, the amount of cess, after granting reasonable opportunity of being heard to the assessee. Thus, the case of the petitioner is that by no stretch of imagination after such a long period any power under sub-rule (5) of Rule 25 could be exercised.
3. Prima facie we find substance in the contention of the petitioner, also considering the decision of the co-ordinate Bench of this Court in Siemens Ltd. vs. The State of Maharashtra & Ors. (Writ Petition No.3124 of 2020) decided on 3 May 2023.
(MANJUSHA DESHPANDE, J.) (G. S. KULKARNI, J.) Page 2 of 2 04/09/2025 P. V. Rane ::: Uploaded on - 10/09/2025 ::: Downloaded on - 12/09/2025 22:51:10 :::