9.
Tribunal.- (1) Subject to such rules, as may be prescribed,
the State Government shall, by a notification published in
the Official Gazette, constitute a Tribunal to be called the
Commercial Tax Tribunal consisting of a Chairperson and two
other members to exercise all the powers and perform all the
functions conferred by or under this Act or any other law
for the time being in force upon such a Tribunal:
Provided that till the
Tribunal is constituted under this Act, the Tribunal constituted
under the Bihar Finance Act, 1981, as it stood before its
repeal by section 94, be deemed to be the Commercial Taxes
Tribunal constituted under this Act and shall continue to
exercise all the powers and perform all the functions conferred
by or under this Act or any other law for the time being in
force.
(2) The Chairperson of the Tribunal shall
be a retired High Court Judge, not exceeding sixty-five years
of age, or a judicial officer of the rank of a District Judge.
(3) One of the other two members shall
be an officer of the Commercial Taxes Department of the State
Government not below the rank of Joint Commissioner and the
third member shall be a person -
(a) who has, for at least ten years, been
in the practice of accountancy as a Chartered Accountant under
the Chartered Accountant Act, 1949 or as a registered Accountant
under any law formerly in force or partly as a registered
Accountant and partly as a Chartered Accountant; or
(b) who is or has been an officer of the
Indian Audit and Accountant Service not below the rank of
Deputy Accountant-General; or
(c) who is a Government servant, whether
serving or retired having experience of at least four years
in the administration of accounts or financial management
in the State Government or Public Sector Undertaking.
(4) (a) The State Government may, if it
considers expedient to do so, set up by a notification, one
or more additional benches of the Tribunal at such places
and having jurisdiction over such area as may be specified
in the notification.
(b) It shall consist of such Member or
Members, as may be specified in the notification, possessing
such qualifications as are specified in sub-sections (2) and
(3):
Provided that if a judicial
officer is appointed to such an Additional bench, he shall
be an officer of not below the rank of an Additional District
Judge.
(5) Any vacancy in the membership of the
Tribunal shall be filled up by the State Government as soon
as possible.
(6) During the vacancy in the post of the
Chairperson pending the appointment of a permanent Chairperson,
the Government may appoint one of the remaining members to
act as Chairperson.
(7) Any person appointed as a member of
the Tribunal shall ordinarily hold office for a period of
three years:
Provided that in case a
retired High Court Judge is appointed as a Chairperson or
any other Government servant is appointed as a member, after
his superannuation to the Tribunal, the terms and conditions
of service including his pay and allowances shall be such
as may be prescribed.
(8) (a) The functions of the Tribunal shall
be exercised by a bench to be constituted by the Chairperson
consisting of one or two or three members.
(b) The nature of cases to be disposed
of by either of these benches shall be under the discretion
of the Chairperson:
Provided that a bench consisting
of only one Member or two Members may in its discretion refer
a case to a larger bench of two or three Members, as the case
may be.
(9) (a) Where an application is heard by
all the three Members of the Tribunal and the Members are
divided in opinion on any point or points, such point or points
shall, be decided in accordance with the opinion of the majority:
Provided that if the post
of any one of the Members is vacant such points shall be decided
in accordance with the opinion of the Chairperson.
(b) Where an application is heard by a
bench consisting of two Members, whether it consists of the
Chairperson or not, and the Members are divided in opinion
on any point or points, such point or points shall be referred
to a bench consisting of all the three Members.
(10) (a) The Members of the Tribunal shall
be deemed to be public servants within the meaning of section
21 of the Indian Penal Code.
(b) No member shall accept any other paid
employment outside the duties of his office during the term
of his membership of the Tribunal.
(11) The Tribunal shall, with the previous
sanction of the State Government, make regulations consistent
with the provisions of the Act and the rules made thereunder,
for regulating its procedure and other matters incidental
to the disposal of its business and publish such regulations
in the Official Gazette.
(12) The Members of the Tribunal shall,
ordinarily be appointed for a period of three years from the
date of their appointment:
Provided that the period
of appointment may be reduced or extended by the State Government.
(13) The Chairperson or any other Member
may, by notice in writing under his hand addressed to the
State Government, resign his office:
Provided that the Chairperson
or any other Member shall, unless he is permitted by the State
Government to relinquish his office sooner, continue to hold
office until the expiry of three months from the date of receipt
of such notice or until a person duly appointed as his successor
enters upon his office or until the expiry of his term of
office, whichever is the earliest.
(14) The Chairperson or any other Member
of a Tribunal shall not be removed from his office except
by an order by the State Government on the ground of proved
misbehavior or incapacity after an inquiry made by a Judge
of the High Court, in which the Chairperson or any other Member
concerned has been informed of the charges against him and
given a reasonable opportunity of being heard in respect of
these charges.
(15) The State Government may, by rules,
regulate the procedure for the investigation of misbehavior
or incapacity of the Chairperson or any other Member. |
