THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE GODA RAGHURAM AND THE HONOURABLE SRI JUSTICE N. RAVI SHANKAR WRIT PETITION No. 16263 of 2009 Dated: 15-9-2011 Between M/s Indian Commerce and Industries, rep. by its Director SriKowtha Lalit Manohar …Petitioner And Commercial Tax Officer, Musherabad Circle, Hyderabad and others …Respondents Oral Order: (Per Hon’ble Sri Justice Goda Raghuram) Against the order of the 4th respondent dated 21-7-2009 rejecting the petitioner’s application for stay and levy of penalty of Rs.2,13,170/- under Section 14(8) of the APGST Act, 1957 (for short ‘the Act’) at 5 times the tax on the unreported turnover, is this writ petition filed. The petitioner is a private limited company and an assessee on the rolls of the 1st respondent, executing contracts for private and public sectors. The 1st respondent-Assessing authority by the order dated 30-1-2006 completed the final assessment under the Act for 2002-03 determining gross and net turnovers. The business premises of the petitioner having been inspected by the 2nd respondent and on the basis of the report the penalty order dated 23-3-2006 was passed by the 1st respondent determining penalty of Rs.2,13,170/-. Aggrieved thereby the petitioner preferred an appeal before the 3rd respondent. By the common order dated 2-5-2009 the 3rd respondent dismissed the appeals preferred against the assessment order as well as the order imposing penalty. Aggrieved, the petitioner preferred a further appeal before the STAT and applied to the 4th respondent for stay of collection of the disputed penalty of Rs.2,13,170/-. By the impugned order dated 21-7-2009 the 4th respondent rejected the stay application. The issues which fall for consideration before the STAT are whether mobilization of Rs.50 lakhs received by the petitioner during the assessment year 2002-03 is assessable to tax during that year or during the subsequent year 2003-04 when the value of the goods procured from the mobilization advance were incorporated in the works contract. It is stated by the learned counsel for the petitioner that assessment order for the subsequent year 2003-04 was passed by the 1st respondent on 12-12-2005 and the opening stock of the goods procured on the basis of mobilization advance in that year was brought to tax. In the facts and circumstances above, we consider it appropriate to grant stay of levy of tax by setting aside the order of the 4th respondent dated 21-7-2009, pending disposal of the appeals by the STAT preferred against the order of penalty passed by the 1st respondent. None of the observations made in this order shall be construed as an expression by this Court on the merits of the petitioner’s case and the STAT may dispose of the appeals on the basis of the material available on record. The writ petition is disposed of as above. There shall be no order as to costs. ______________________ GODA RAGHURAM, J 15th September, 2011 ______________________ N. RAVI SHANKAR, J GRR