The onus is on the assessee to establish the genuineness of the input tax credit (ITC) under the DVAT Act.

JUDGMENT

Vibhu Bakhru, J.

CM APPL. 34455/2023 (condonation of delay of 38 days in filing the present appeal against the impugned order dated 31.03.2023)

1. For the reasons stated in the application, the same is allowed and the delay in filing the present appeal is condoned.

2. The application stands disposed of.

CM APPL. 34457/2023 (exemption from filing the original/certified copies/true typed copies of annexures as the same are either dim copies or typed in single space or hand written)

3. Exemption allowed, subject to all just exceptions.

4. The application stands disposed of.

VAT APPEAL 11/2023 & CM APPL. 34456/2023 (stay of recovery proceedings)

5. The appellant has filed the present appeal impugning the order dated 31.03.2023 (hereafter `impugned order') passed by the Appellate Tribunal for Delhi Value Added Tax (hereafter, the Tribunal) dismissing the appellant's appeal against an order dated 28.11.2022 passed by the Objection Hearing Authority (hereafter `OHA'). In terms of the said order, the OHA had rejected the appellant's objection under Section 74 of the Delhi Value Added Tax Act, 2004 (hereafter `DVAT Act') against the default assessment of tax framed by the Assessing Authority, under Section 32 of the DVAT Act, for the financial year 2013-14.

6. The Assessing Authority rejected the appellant's claim for refund, which arose in respect of its input tax credit (hereafter `ITC'), on the ground that the appellant had failed to establish the genuineness of the ITC on the basis of any documentary evidence.

7. The Assessing Authority had also recorded that the notice, under Section 59(2) of the DVAT Act, dated 16.01.2018, was issued to the appellant for the production of its records including the purchase invoices, bank statements etc. but the appellant had failed to produce the same. Thus, essentially, the default assessment was framed for want of the appellant producing the necessary evidence and material to establish the payment of ITC. As noted above, the appellant's claim for refund is based on the ITC.

8. The OHA dismissed the appellant's objections on the same ground - failure on the part of the appellant to produce the relevant material necessary to establish the payment of ITC. Paragraphs 7 and 8 of the order passed by the OHA read as under:

"7. I have perused the records available/made available and also the oral arguments made by the Ld. Counsel. As far as claim of ITC is concerned, it is observed that verification of the purchase and ITC/refund is a question of fact and can be best examined by way of documentary evidences such as tax invoices, DVAT-30 & 31, bank records etc. It is also observed that unless and until bona fide of purchase transactions are under doubt, the dealer deserves the benefit of ITC and in case the bona fides of purchases are doubtful, it would be necessary to go into other details of transactions to verify the bona fide of purchases. In the instant case, the Counsel for the Objector Dealer despite being accorded due opportunities of being heard on various occasions has failed to justify his claim by failing to provide the necessary documentary evidences.

8. In view of the above facts, it is undisputed that objector has failed to produce relevant records such as DVAT-30-31, bank statements, proof of movement of goods etc. before the Assessing Authority during the present proceedings and therefore, I have no option but to hold that impugned assessment notice has been issued correctly in accordance with law."

9. There is no dispute that the appellant had not placed any invoice, bank statement or other material to establish the payment of ITC before the OHA.

10. Aggrieved by the OHA's order dated 28.11.2022, the appellant preferred the appeal (Appeal No. 460/ATVAT/2022) before the learned Tribunal. The learned Tribunal has also rejected the appellant's appeal for the same reason.

11. It is apparent from the orders passed by the Assessing Authority, the learned OHA, and the learned Tr