Appeal No 442 of 1974
From the Judgment and Order dated the 17th of August 1970 of the Punjab  Haryana High Court in Civil Writ No 41362
VC Mahajan and OP Sharma for the Appellant
Harbans Singh for Respondent No 2
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by KHANNA J
This is an appeal on certificate against the judgment of the Punjab and Haryana High Court whereby the High Court held that the appellant firm had failed to prove that it had stood dissolved on a date prior to the date of assessment viz March 12 1962
The appellant firm carries on business as commission agents of cotton and food grains
In respect of the year 1959 60 the appellant did not submit any return under the Punjab General Sales Tax Act
A notice was thereupon issued to the appellant firm and the 753 case was fixed for July 1 1960
The appellant challenged the validity of the assessment proceedings by means of a writ petition in the High Court
The High Court during the pendency of the petition stayed the proceedings
Ulti mately it seems the writ petition was dismissed and the assessment proceedings were resumed on November 30 1961
Various dates were fixed thereafter
February 17 1962 was fixed as the final date of hearing
On that date intima tion was given on behalf
of the appellant that the appel lant firm had ceased to do any work since February 1961
It was also represented that a formal document had been exe cuted on August 8 1961
The assessing authority despite that intimation proceeded to make an order of assessment dated March 12 1962
The appellant thereupon filed anoth er petition under article 226 of the Constitution in the Punjab High Court praying for the quashing of the assess ment order
It was stated on behalf of the appellant that the appellant firm had been dissolved before the date of assessment order and as such the sales tax authorities could not make an order for assessment
The High Court dismissed the petition on the ground that the assessment proceedings had been initiated long before the alleged date of dissolution of the firm
The appellant thereafter came up to this Court in appeal against the said decision of the High Court
This Court set aside the judgment of the High Court following its decision in the case of State of Punjab vs Ms Jullundur Vegetables Syndicate1 The case was remanded to the High Court as no definite finding had been given by the High Court regarding the dissolution of the appellant firm and about the fact as to whether the said dissolution had taken place before the date of the order of assessment namely March 12 1962
After remand the High Court called upon the sales tax officer to make an enquiry and submit a report on the point as to whether the appellant firm had been dissolved on August 8 1961 as alleged by the appellant
The sales tax officer thereafter made an enquiry and submitted a report that the appellant firm had not proved its dissolution on August 8 1961 or before the date of assessment order
The High Court after receipt of the report itself examined the matter and came to the conclusion that on the material on record brought by the appellant it had not been proved that the appellant firm had stood dissolved on a date prior to March 12 1962
It is the correctness of the above decision of the High Court which has now been assailed before us by the appellant in this appeal
We have heard Mr Mahajan on behalf of the appellant and find no cogent ground to take a view different from that of the High Court
The High Court in the course of its judg ment has pointed out that though the assessment order was made on March 12 1962 a large number of hearings took place between March 8 1961 the alleged date of dissolution and March 12 1962
At no hearing was any intimation given by the appellant to the assessing authority that the firm had stood dissolved
All that was intimated on February 17 1962 was that the firm had ceased to do work in February 1961 and 1 119661 2 SCn
457 754 that a formal document had been executed on August 8 1961
It was also not the case
of the appellant that all the six partners of the appellant firm had signed that document
Another factor which weighed with the High Court was that though intimation is required to be given under section 16 of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act regarding the dissolu tion of a firm within thirty days of such dissolution no such intimation was given by the appellant firm until April 2 1962 ie nearly eight months after the alleged date of dissolution
In our opinion the facts and circumstances referred to by the High Court throw a considerable doubt
upon the correctness of the statement made on behalf of the appel lant firm  that it had stood dissolved on August 8 1961
It has to be borne in mind that the High Court was dealing with the matter on the writ side
In a writ petition the SCOpe for interference with a finding of the departmental authorities is much more restricted and the court can nor mally interfere only if the finding is based upon no evi dence or is based upon extraneous or irrelevant evidence or is otherwise perverse
The same cannot be said of the finding of the sales tax authority embodied in its report sent to the High Court in the present case
We see no sufficient ground to interfere with the judgment of the High Court
The appeal fails and is dismissed
There will be no order as to costs


Summary:
In response to a notice from the assessing authority under the Punjab General Sales Tax Act that the appellant had not filed a return in respect of the assessment year 1959 60 the appellant claimed that the firm had ceased to do any work since February
1961 and that a formal document to that effect was executed in August 1961
The assessing authority made an order of assessment in March 1962
In a writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution filed  by the appellant the High Court directed the Sales Tax Officer to enquire and report if the appellant firm had proved its dissolution in August 1961 or before the date of assessment order
The Sales Tax Officer reported that it had not The High Court itself examined the matter and came to the sme conclusion of that reached by the Sales Tax Officer
It also found that though intimation was required to be given under section 16 of the Act regarding the dissolution of the firm within 30 days of such dissolution no such intimation was given under April 1962 and dismissed the writ petition
Dismissing the appeal to this Court HELD 1 There is no sufficient ground to interfere with the judgment of the High Court
The facts and circum stances referred to by the High Court throw a considerable doubt upon the correctness of the appellant s statement that it had stood dissolved in August 1961
754 D  B 2 The High Court was dealing with the matter on the writ side
In a writ petition the scope for interference
with a finding of the departmental authorities is much more restricted and the court can normally interfere only if the finding is based upon extraneous or irrelevant evidence or is otherwise perverse
The same cannot be said of the finding of the sales tax authority embodied in its report sent to the High Court in the present case
754 C