NEW DELHI: As if sliding revenue growth was not enough, Patanjali Ayurved will now come under the tax scanner. Five years ago, the income-tax department ordered a special audit of the company for assessment year 2010-2011 but Patanjali had got interim relief from the court. Now the Delhi High Court has allowed the special audit and told Patanjali to cooperate with the income tax department, according to a report on legal news website LiveLaw.in.Patanjali's argument against initiation of special audit was that the assessment officer (AO) was trying to take scrutiny through special auditor as an easy route to escape his primary duty to examine the books and the returns and complete the assessments in time.However, the court did not agree with this argument. "This court is of the opinion that far from the case showing non-application of mind, the AO has carefully outlined what were the salient aspects in the accounts and returns of the assessee that needed to be looked into and made the impugned order directing special audit. The assessee has not alleged any mala fides. In view of these reasons, the court is of the opinion that the writ petition has no merit," the judgment said. "Consequently, the interim orders which operated for these last 5 years are vacated. The assessee is directed to co-operate with the Special Auditor."The income tax department had argued that a special audit was required due to the complexity in the accounts of Patanjali. It argued that it was required to identify the method and the relevant accounting standard applicable for recognition of income from three segments or sources of revenue and also to ascertain the correctness of the income recognised.Yoga guru Ramdev 's Patanjali Ayurved has seen sales fall for the first time in five years due to disruption by Goods and Services Tax and a weak distribution network. The company’s standalone consumer goods revenue declined more than 10 per cent to Rs 8,148 crore in the year ended March 2018—the first time since 2013, according to a report by Care Ratings.It seems Patanjali's sprint to lead the FMCG race has been broken. The ambitious target set by Ramdev, the founder and brand ambassador of Patanjali, seems nowhere in sight. He had wanted the company to reach Rs 20,000 crore turnover in three to five years. It had reached Rs 10,000 crore in revenues by FY16 from less than Rs 500 crore in FY12. ET Prime had revealed in May this year that Ramdev's Rs 20,000 crore dream was corroding the very soul of its business — its distribution network.