(FE)
In a setback to the state government, the Orissa High Court today passed an order to “keep in abeyance” a demand notice of VAT recovery from Indian Oil Corporation Limited. The state government in February had asked the IOCL to deposit tax of Rs 1485.98 crore for the sale of finished products from its Paradip Refinery project, which was commissioned in November, 2015.
A division bench of justices Indrajit Mahanti and Biswajit Mohanty while adjudicating over a petition, filed by IOCL, also ordered the high-level working group formed under the chairmanship of Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry to look into the concerns raised by the government of Odisha and IOCL within two months.
The Odisha government after unilaterally striking down a vital clause from the 2004-MoU signed between itself and the IOCL had withdrawn the mutually agreed tax incentive to IOCL and placed the tax recovery notice on the Corporation.
