52. Recovery of tax, penalty, interest, appointment of Tax Recovery Officer, etc.
(1) Any amount of tax, penalty or interest due under this Act from a dealer, casual trader, transporter, owner or lessee of warehouse, person or owner of goods which remains unpaid after the date specified in a notice of demand issued in this behalf under this Act or the rules made thereunder, directing payment of such amount of tax, penalty or interest, shall be recoverable-
(a) as an arrear of land revenue as if it were payable to the Collector, or
(b) by the Tax Recovery Officer in accordance with the provisions of sub-section (2) of this section, section 53, section 54, section 55 or section 56 and the rules regulating the procedure for recovery of tax, penalty and interest as laid down in Schedule X (hereinafter referred to as the rules in Schedule X), where the State Government directs by general or special order so to do in respect of such class or classes of dealers having their places of business on such area or areas as may be specified in such order.
(2) Where any amount of tax, penalty or interest is recoverable in accordance with the provisions of clause (b) of sub-section (1), the Commissioner may send to the Tax Recovery Officer a certificate under his signature specifying the amount of such tax, penalty or interest due from the dealer, casual trader, transporter, owner or lessee of warehouse, person or owner of goods (hereinafter referred to as the certificate-debtor), and the Tax Recovery Officer shall, on receipt of such certificate, proceed to recover from the certificate-debtor the amount specified in the certificate by one or more of the following modes in accordance with the rules in Schedule X-
(a) attachment and sale of the movable property of the certificate-debtor ;
(b) attachment and sale of the immovable property of the certificate-debtor ;
(c) arrest of the certificate-debtor and his detention in prison ;
(d) appointing a receiver for the management of the movable and immovable properties of the certificate-debtor.
(3) The Commissioner may send a certificate under sub-section (2), notwithstanding that proceedings for recovery of such tax, penalty or interest have been initiated or are continuing by any other mode.
(4) For the purposes of this section, section 53, section 54, section 55 or section 56 and the rules in Schedule X, the State Government may by notification appoint such number of Tax Recovery Officers as it may deem fit, and specify in the Notification the area or areas over which they shall exercise jurisdiction.
(5) Where a certificate has been sent to a Tax Recovery Officer, he shall cause to be served upon the certificate-debtor, in the prescribed manner, a notice in the prescribed form and a copy of the said certificate.
(6) On the service of notice of any certificate under sub-section (5) upon a certificate-debtor,-
(a) any private transfer or delivery of any of his immovable property situated in the area in which the certificate is sent, or of any interest in any such property, shall be void against any claim enforceable in execution of the certificate ; and
(b) the amount due from time to time in respect of the certificate shall be a charge upon the immovable property of the certificate-debtor, wherever situated, to which every other charge created subsequently to the service of the said notice shall be postponed.
(7) The certificate-debtor may, within thirty days from the service of the notice required by sub-section (5), or where the notice has not been duly served, then, within thirty days from the execution of any process for enforcing the certificate, present to the Tax Recovery Officer to whom the certificate is sent, or to the Tax Recovery Officer, who is executing the certificate, a petition, in the prescribed form, signed and verified in the prescribed manner, denying his liability in whole or in part.
(8) The Tax Recovery Officer to whom the original certificate is sent shall, subject to the provisions of sub-section (1) of section 55, hear the petition, take evidence, if necessary, and determine whether the certificate-debtor is liable for the whole or any part of the amount for which certificate was signed.
(9) Where any proceedings for the recovery of any amount of tax, penalty or interest remaining unpaid have been commenced under this chapter and the amount of tax, penalty or interest is subsequently modified, enhanced or reduced in consequence of any assessment made, or order passed on appeal, revision or review, under this Act, the Commissioner may, in such manner and within such period as may be prescribed, inform in this behalf the certificate-debtor and the Collector or the Tax Recovery Officer, as the case may be, by whom or under whose order the recovery is being made or to be made, and thereupon such proceedings may be continued as if the amount of tax, penalty or interest as so modified, enhanced or reduced has been substituted for the amount of tax, penalty or interest which was to be recovered under sub-section (1).
(10) Where a Tax Recovery Officer causes to be served upon a certificate-debtor a notice in the prescribed manner and in the prescribed form under sub-section (5) and such certificate-debtor fails to pay the amount specified in such notice within fifteen days from the date of service of such notice, the certificate-debtor shall pay a simple interest at the rate of one per centum for each British calendar month of default from the date immediately following the end of the period of time specified in such notice upto the date preceding the date of full payment of the amount specified in such notice upon so much of the amount as remains unpaid.
(11) The interest payable under sub-section (10) shall be recoverable in accordance with the rules in Schedule X