Bombay High Court Imposes Personal Costs for Pursuing a Tax Appeal Contrary to Binding Precedent

The Bombay High Court dismissed the Revenue’s appeal where the tax effect of ₹7,11,920 was below the prescribed monetary threshold and the Revenue could not invoke the exception under the applicable CBDT Circular. Following its earlier ruling in Siddhesh Mahendra Khara, the Court held that information received from the State Sales Tax Department did not fall within the specified category of law enforcement agencies. The Court also deprecated the Revenue’s decision to pursue the appeal despite acknowledging that the earlier ruling covered the matter, andimposed costs of ₹25,000 personally on the Deputy Commissioner concerned.