HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO W.P.No.11576 of 2011 Dated: 26-04-2011 Between: Guthikonda Venkata Subba Rao …Petitioner AND Deputy Commercial Tax Officer-IV, Eluru, West Godavari District Respondent. This Court made the following: HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE A. GOPAL REDDY AND HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE RAJA ELANGO W.P.No.11576 of 2011 ORDER: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice A.Gopal Reddy) By means of filing this writ petition under Article 226 of Constitution of India, petitioner seeks a writ of mandamus from this Court to set aside the attachment notice dated 29.1.2011 issued by the respondent for due recovery of the sales tax due and payable by the petitioner-dealer under the provisions of the Revenue Recovery Act. Petitioner states that he is a sand contractor and was successful bidder for the sand auctions conducted in respect of Tamiluru River, West Godavari District and became lessee for the sand reach on Tamiluru River for the year 2001-2002 and 2002-2003 and that he paid all necessary tax including seinerage charges during that period. While so, the respondent issued the impugned notice straight away attaching the landed property of the petitioner under Section 27 of the Revenue Recovery Act (for short ‘Act’). The impugned notice was issued after long lapse of 8 years that too without affording any opportunity of being heard. Issuance of impugned notice straight away will have the effect of serious civil consequences and that the statute particularly provides the procedure to give opportunity of being heard to the affected party. No notice much less any opportunity of explanation was given to the petitioner. Therefore, attaching the property of the petitioner is arbitrary and illegal and is in violation of principles of natural justice and hence the impugned notice is liable to be set aside. Learned counsel for the petitioner strenuously contends that without there being any assessment order passed, the above tax has been determined and therefore, the same cannot be recovered under the Act. When the petitioner contended that the claim is barred by limitation, it is for the authorities to show that the recovery was claimed within the period of limitation and the assessment was made as per Section 14 of the A.P. General Sales Tax Act, 1957. Without giving any such particulars, straight away, the respondent cannot attach the property for the sums due. Learned Government Pleader for Commercial Tax filed the copies of demand notices issued to the petitioner on 16.11.2009, 17.12.2009, 7.7.2010 and also 25.4.2011 issued in Form No.4 which is a demand prior to attachment of land under Section 25 of the Act. The learned Government Pleader contends that in spite of service of notices on the assessment made in the proceedings, dated 15.2.2006 for the year 2002-2003 demanding the amount, the petitioner has not chosen to pay the said amount and therefore, there is no other go for the respondent except to attach the property of the petitioner. In the absence of any plea taken by the petitioner that no assessment was made within four years under sub-section (4)(a) of Section 14 of the A.P. General Sales Tax Act, 1957, it is not open for the petitioner to contend that there was no assessment prior to issuing the impugned notice for recovery of the amounts due on assessment towards tax and other dues. It is now fairly sell settled that any amounts due to the State Government can be recovered as arrears of land revenue by following the procedure as contemplated under Section 52 of the Revenue Recovery Act. Further Article 112 of the Limitation Act prescribes 30 years period for recovery of the amounts due to the State Government. In view of the same, we do not see any merit in the contention advanced by the learned counsel for the petitioner that the claim for the amount due is barred by limitation. Accordingly, the writ petition is dismissed granting liberty to the petitioner to avail the remedies available to him under law. No costs. ________________ A. GOPAL REDDY, J. __________________ APRIL 26, 2011 RAJA ELANGO, J. Tsr.