J U D G M E N T

The petitioner – a bar-attached hotel and an assessee under the provisions of the Kerala General Sales Tax (KGST) Act, 1963, has filed the captioned writ petition seeking to challenge Ext.P1 Assessment Order for the year 2020-21, Insofar as it sought to levy interest for the belated payment of tax and also demand cess from the petitioner.

2. I have heard Sri.S. Sajeevan, the learned counsel for the petitioner, as well as Sri.Arun Ajay Shankar, the learned Government Pleader for the respondents.

3. The demand of cess cannot be sustained, insofar as the cess has subsequently been recalled by virtue of the provisions of the Finance Act, 2018 . Similarly, the delay in payment of tax for the year 2020-22 was only because of the fact that during that year, bar-hotels were permitted to carry out counter sales for which the liability was only at the rate of 5 percentage as against the 10 percentage applicable to the bar-hotels. The rate of tax when counter sales were effected by the bar-hotel was fixed by the Government only subsequently, and it is on that basis that the tax was also satisfied. It is the contention of the petitioner that no interest can be demanded since th