SALES TAX AUTHORITIES AND THEIR FUNCTIONS

Sales Tax Authorities

(1) For carrying out the purposes of this Act, the State Government shall
appoint an officer to be called the Commissioner of Sales Tax.

(2) Likewise, the State Government may appoint a Special Commissioner and
such number of Additional Commissioners of Sales Tax, and such number of, -
(a) Joint Commissioners,
(b) Senior Deputy Commissioners,
(c) Deputy Commissioners,
(d) Assistant Commissioners,
(e) Sales Tax Officers, and
(f) other officers and persons, and give them such designations, as the
Government deems necessary.

(3) The Commissioner shall have jurisdiction over the whole of the State. All
other officers shall have jurisdiction over the whole of the State or over such
local areas as the Commissioner may, by notification in the Official
Gazette,specify.

(4) The Commissioner shall have and exercise all the powers and perform all
the duties, conferred or imposed on the Commissioner by or under this Act, a
Special Commissioner of Sales Tax and the Additional Commissioner or
Additional Commissioners of Sales Tax, if any be appointed, shall, save as
otherwise directed by the Commissioner by notification in the Official
Gazette, have and exercise, within his or their jurisdiction, all the powers and
perform all the duties, conferred or imposed on the Commissioner, by or under
this Act.

(5) A Joint Commissioner shall, save as otherwise directed by the

Commissioner by notification in the Official Gazette, have and exercise, in the
area within his jurisdiction, all the powers, and shall perform all the duties,
conferred or imposed on the Commissioner, by or under this Act.

(6) Senior Deputy Commissioners, Deputy Commissioners, Assistant

Commissioners, Sales Tax Officers, other officers and persons shall, within
their jurisdiction, exercise such of the powers and perform such of the duties of
the Commissioner under this Act, as the Commissioner may, subject to such
conditions and restrictions as he may, by general or special order impose,
delegate to them either generally, or as respects any particular matter or class of
matters by an order notified in the Official Gazette.
(7) The State Government may, subject to such restrictions and conditions, if
any, as it may impose, by notification in the Official Gazette, delegate to the
Commissioner the powers (not being the powers of the appointment of a Special
Commissioner or Additional Commissioner or Joint Commissioner) conferred
on the Government by sub-section (2).

(8) No person shall be entitled to call in question in any proceeding, any

exercise of power including the territorial jurisdiction of any officer or person
appointed under sub-section (2), after the expiry of the period of thirty days
from the date of receipt by such person of any communication, intimation, order
or notice under this Act or under any earlier law, issued by such officer or
person. If within the period aforesaid, an application in writing in the prescribed
form raising an objection as to such exercise of power by or the jurisdiction of
any such officer or person is made to such officer or person, he shall refer the
question to the Commissioner, who shall, after giving the applicant a reasonable
opportunity of being heard, make an order determining the question. The order
made by the Commissioner shall be final.

(9) All officers and persons appointed under sub-section (2) shall be subordinate
to the Commissioner; and the subordination of officers other than the
Commissioner, and of persons, amongst themselves shall be such as may be
prescribed.

(10) The Commissioner may, from time to time, issue such instructions and
directions as he may deem fit to the authorities and officers subordinate to him
for carrying out the purposes of this Act, and such authorities and officers shall
observe and follow such instructions and directions of the Commissioner:
Provided that, no such instructions or directions shall be issued, -
(i) so as to require any authority to pass a particular order or to dispose of a
particular case in a particular manner; or
(ii) so as to interfere with the discretion of the appellate authorities in any
particular case:
Provided further that, if the Commissioner is of the opinion that it is necessary
in the public interest so to do, he may cause such instructions and directions to
be published and circulated for general information.
Constitution of Circles, Ranges and Large Tax-payers Units. –
(1)The Government may, by notification, constitute areas into circles
over which an Assistant Sales Tax Officer or a Sales Tax Officer, as
the Commissioner may specify by notification, shall exercise
jurisdiction:
Provided that one or more Assessment Units may be established under a
circle.

(2) An Assistant Sales Tax Officer or a Sales Tax Officer exercising

jurisdiction over any circle may also exercise jurisdiction over another
circle or more circles, if so directed, by the Commissioner, by
notification.
(3) The circles constituted by the Government, by notification, can be
reconstituted likewise at any time by notification.
(4) The Government may, by notification, constitute several circles
into ranges over which an Assistant Commissioner or a Deputy
Commissioner of Sales Tax, appointed as such to those ranges, shall,
exercise jurisdiction.

(5) The ranges constituted by the Government, by notification, may

likewise be reconstituted, by a notification.
(6) The Government may, by notification, constitute one or more
Large Tax payers’ Unit, hereinafter referred to as LTU, in each range
and, a Sales Tax Officer or an Assistant Commissioner, appointed as
such to those units shall, exercise jurisdiction over the range in which
such units are constituted.
(7) The Commissioner may, by notification, assign the record of any
dealer under any circle or in the range to the LTU, constituted in that
range.
(8) The Sales Tax Officer or the Assistant Commissioner, as the case
may be, appointed as such to the LTU shall, discharge such functions
under the Act and rules made thereunder, as may be specified by the
Commissioner, by notification, in respect of the dealers, whose
records are assigned to that LTU under sub-rule(7).
(9) The Government may also, by notification, constitute Enforcement
Ranges comprising different circles over which an Assistant
Commissioner and a Sales Tax Officer or an Assistant Sales Tax
Officer under him shall exercise jurisdiction.
Delegation of Commissioner’s powers and functions. –

(1) The Commissioner shall not delegate to any officer, appointed under
sub-section (2) of section 3, to assist him, the powers under sub-section (1) of
section 84 and sub-section (1) of section 86.

(2) The Commissioner shall not delegate to any officer, appointed under sub-
section (2) of section 3, to assist him, the powers under sub-section (1) of
section 79, without the prior approval of the Government.

(3) The Commissioner shall not authorize any officer below the rank of a
Sales Tax Officer, to exercise power under sub-section (3) of section 73, sub-
section (3) and sub-section (11) of section 74 and sub-section (2) of section 75.

Special powers of Sales Tax authorities for recovery of tax as arrears of

land revenue :-
(1) For the purpose of effecting recovery of the amount of tax, penalty,
interest, amount forfeited or any other sum, due and recoverable from any
dealer or other person by or under the provisions of this Act, as arrears of land
revenue,-
(i) the Commissioner of Sales Tax shall have and exercise all the powers and
perform all Special powers of Sales Tax authorities for recovery of tax as
arrears of land revenue :-
(1) For the purpose of effecting recovery of the amount of tax, penalty,
interest, amount forfeited or any other sum, due and recoverable from any
dealer or other person by or under the provisions of this Act, as arrears of land
revenue,-
(i) the Commissioner of Sales Tax shall have and exercise all the powers and
perform all the duties of the Commissioner under the Maharashtra Land
Revenue Code, 1966 (Mah. XLI of 1966);
(ii) the Additional Commissioner of Sales Tax shall have and exercise all the
powers and perform all the duties of the Additional Commissioner under the
said Code ;
(iii) the Joint Commissioner of Sales Tax shall have and exercise all the powers
and perform all the duties of the Collector under the said Code;
(iv) the Senior Deputy Commissioner and the Deputy Commissioner of Sales
Tax shall have and exercise all the powers (except the powers of confirmation
of sale and arrest and confinement of a defaulter in a civil jail) and perform, all
the duties of the Assistant or Deputy Collector under the said Code;
(v) the Assistant Commissioner and the Sales Tax Officer shall have and
exercise all the powers (except the powers of confirmation of sale and arrest and
confinement of a defaulter in a civil jail) and perform all the duties of the
Tahsildar under the said Code.