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CHAPTER
XII
OFFENCES
AND PENALTIES
74. Offences
and penalty:-
(1) Whoever
knowingly,
(a)
not being a
registered dealer under this Act, represents that he is or
was a registered dealer at the time when he sells or buys
goods, or
(b)
furnishes a false return, or
(c)
produces before the
Commissioner or the Tribunal, a false bill, cash
memorandum, voucher, declaration, certificate or other
document referred to in sub-section (4) of section 29, or
(d)
keeps false account of the value of goods bought or sold
by him in contravention of sub-section (1) of section 63,
or
(e)
produces false accounts, registers or documents or
knowingly furnishes false information, or
(f)
issues to any person any certificate or declaration, under
the Act, rules or notifications, or a bill, cash
memorandum, voucher, delivery challan, lorry receipt or
other document which he knows or has reason to believe to
be false, or
(g)
falsely represents that he is authorized under section 82
to appear before any authority in any proceeding,
shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous
imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one
month but which may extend to one year and with fine.
(1A) (i) Whoever knowingly with the intention to
defraud revenue, issues or produces a false tax invoice
and thereby makes a false claim in respect of the set-off
or the refund, or claims any other deduction that results
into reduced tax liability or enhances the amount of
refund, or
(ii) abets any of the aforesaid offences,
shall, on conviction, be punished with rigorous
imprisonment for a term which shall not be less than one
year but which may extend to two years and with fine.
(2) Whoever
wilfully attempts in any manner whatsoever to evade any
tax leviable under this Act or payment of any tax, penalty
or interest under this Act, shall, on conviction, be
punished with rigorous imprisonment which shall not be
less than three months but which may extend to one year
and with fine.
(3) Whoever,
(a)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of sub-section (3) of section 14, or
(b)
is engaged in business as a dealer without being
registered under section 16, or
(c)
fails, without sufficient cause, to obtain, in lieu of the
existing certificate of registration, a fresh certificate
of registration when required to do so as provided in
sub-section (1) of section 17, or
(d)
fails, without sufficient cause, to furnish any
information required by section 18, or
(e)
fails, without
sufficient cause to furnish a declaration or, as the case
may be, a revised declaration as provided in sub-section
(1) of section 19 or fails without sufficient cause to
communicate the permanent account number obtained under
the Income tax Act, 1961 (43 of 1961) or, as the case may
be, fails to state whether he has applied for the same and
fails without sufficient cause to provide the details of
the application as provided in sub-section (2) of section
19, or
(f)
fails, without sufficient cause, to furnish any return or,
as the case may be, a complete and self-consistent return
as required by section 20 by the date and in the manner
prescribed, or
(g)
fails, without sufficient cause, to pay the tax deductible
at source or to deduct at source such tax, or fails
without sufficient cause to obtain the sales tax deduction
account number or fails without sufficient cause to file a
return as required under the provisions of section 31, or
(h)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of the notice issued under sub-section (1) of
section 33, or
(i)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of any order issued under sub-section (1) of
section 35, or
(j)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of any order issued under sub-section (3) of
section 38, or
(k)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of section 42, or
(l)
without reasonable cause, contravenes any of the
provisions of section 60, or
(m)
fails, without sufficient cause, to get his accounts
audited or furnish the report of the audit, as required
under section 61, or
(n)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of section 63, or
(o) fails, without
sufficient cause, to comply with the requirements of
section 64, or
(p)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with the
requirements of section 65, or
(q)
fails, without sufficient cause, to furnish any
information or return required by section 70 by the date
and in the manner prescribed or willfully furnishes any
information or return which he knows to be incorrect or
false, or
(r)
fails, without sufficient cause, to issue a tax invoice,
bill or cash memorandum as required under section 86, or
(s)
contravenes, without reasonable cause, any of the
conditions, subject to which the Certificate of
Entitlement is granted, or
(t)
fails, without sufficient cause, to comply with any notice
in respect of any proceedings,
shall, on conviction, be punished with simple imprisonment
for a term which may extend to six months and with fine.
(4) Whoever
aids or abets or induces any person in commission of any
act specified in sub-section (1) or (2) shall, on
conviction, be punished with simple imprisonment which
shall not be less than one month but which may extend to
one year and with fine and, whoever, aids, abets or
induces any person in commission of any act specified in
sub-section (3) shall, on conviction, be punished with
simple imprisonment which may extend to one month and with
fine.
(5) Whoever commits any of the acts specified
in sub-sections (1) to (4) and the offence is a continuing
one under any of the provisions of these sub-sections,
shall, on conviction, be punished with daily fine not less
than rupees one hundred during the period of the
continuance of the offence, in addition to the punishments
provided under this section.
(6) Where
a dealer is accused of an offence specified in sub-section
(1), (2) or (3), the person deemed to be the manager of
the business of such dealer under section 19 shall also be
deemed to be guilty of such offence, unless he proves that
the offence was committed without his knowledge or that he
exercised all due diligence to prevent the commission
thereof.
(7) In any prosecution for an offence under
this section, which requires a culpable mental state on
the part of the accused, the court shall presume the
existence of such mental state, but it shall be a defence
for the accused to prove the fact that he had no such
mental state with respect to the act charged as an offence
in that prosecution.
Explanation. Culpable mental state includes
intention, motive or knowledge of a fact or belief in or
reason to believe, a fact and a fact is said to be proved
only when the court believes it to exist beyond reasonable
doubt and not merely when its existence is established by
a preponderance of probability.
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