Advocates:
DILEEP P.PILLAI, JOSEPH MARKOSE, M.P.Vinod, R.Satish, Y.YASHOBANT DAS

Certainly. Based on the provided legal document, here are the key points summarized:

• The appellant, a registered company, leased its distillery unit to a lessee, Eagle Distillery (P) Ltd., with the requisite approvals and notifications made to the tax authorities (!) (!) .
• The lease involved the use of the appellant’s registration number by the lessee, which was permitted through various communications, though this permission was not renewed after December 1985 (!) (!) .
• The lessee continued to file returns under its own name and used the appellant’s registration number and statutory forms, but failed to deposit the collected sales tax, leading to notices for recovery of dues for multiple assessment years (!) .
• The appellant challenged the recovery proceedings, but the courts held that the liability for tax was primarily on the business entity that conducted the sale, i.e., the lessee, and that the assessment orders were valid (!) (!) .
• The courts observed that the appellant acted as an agent of the lessee and that the lessee’s continued use of the registration number and forms indicated collusion and fraud to evade tax payments (!) (!) (!) .
• The legal framework establishes that the liability to pay sales tax is on the registered dealer and also extends to agents or transferees involved in the transaction, especially when there is evidence of sham arrangements or collusion (!) (!) (!) .
• The property of the dealer in whose name the registration was issued can be subjected to attachment and sale to recover due taxes (!) .
• The judgment emphasizes that the mode of recovery is prescribed by law, and the revenue authorities are entitled to proceed against the property of the registered dealer or its assets if dues remain unpaid (!) .
• The courts reaffirm that the appellant’s liability to pay the assessed tax is valid and that the appeals are dismissed, with the understanding that the revenue can recover arrears through lawful means (!) (!) .

These points reflect the legal reasoning and findings regarding the liability for sales tax, the role of the appellant as an agent, and the procedures for recovery under the relevant statutes.