THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE GODA RAGHURAM AND THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE RAMESH RANGANATHAN WRIT PETITION No. 18510 of 2009 Dated: 09-09-2009 Between: M/s S.L.S. Power Ltd., rep. by Sri MedaBadrinarayana …Petitioner and The Commercial Tax Officer-III, R.R.Street, Nellore, Nellore District and others. …Respondents. Order: (Per RR, J) The notice issued by the 1st respondent on 27-8-2009 calling upon the petitioner to pay the balance tax of Rs.19,30,928-00, for the assessment year 2003-04 (APGST), within seven days from the date of receipt of the notice, and threatening action, for realization of the amount, under the provisions of the Revenue Recovery Act, is under challenge in this writ petition. The petitioner is a registered dealer on the rolls of the 1st respondent and is carrying on business in electricity generation. For the assessment year 2003-04 the 1st respondent-assessing authority passed an assessment order on 28-3-2007 levying tax on a turnover of Rs.5,85,02,837-00. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioner preferred an appeal to the Appellate Deputy Commissioner who, by order dated 1-10-2007, allowed the appeal. The 2nd respondent, in exercise of his powers of suo motu revision under Section 20 of the APGST Act, 1957 issued show-cause notice dated 1-12-2008 proposing to revise the order of the Appellate Deputy Commissioner and restore the assessment order of the 1st respondent. The petitioner filed their objections and, thereafter, the 2nd respondent passed an order of revision on 17-2-2009 setting aside the order of the Appellate Deputy Commissioner and restoring the assessment order passed by the 1st respondent. Aggrieved thereby, the petitioner filed W.P.No. 8174 of 2009, which was dismissed on 29-4-2009 leaving it open to the petitioner to avail the alternate remedy of appeal before the Tribunal. The petitioner filed T.A.No. 285 of 2009 along with an application for stay on 30-5-2009. The grievance of the petitioner is that, despite the stay application being filed as early as on 30-5-2009, no orders have been passed thereon till date though more than four months have elapsed. He relies on the judgment of a Division Bench of this Court in Anab-e-Shahi Wines and Distilleries Pvt. Ltd. V. Appellate Deputy Commissioner, Secunderabad[1] in this regard. As the petitioner’s application for stay of collection of the disputed tax is pending before the Tribunal for nearly four months, ends of justice would be met if the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal, Visakhapatnam Bench is directed to dispose of the stay application, filed along with T.A.No. 285 of 2009, within a period of two weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order. The revenue is directed not to take any coercive steps for recovery of the balance disputed tax till the stay application filed before the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal, Visakhapatnam Bench, is disposed of. The writ petition is disposed of accordingly. There shall be no order as to costs. ___________________________ GODA RAGHURAM, J ________________________________ RAMESH RANGANATHAN, J 9th September, 2009. GRR [1] (1995) 21 APSTJ 98 (AP)