STATE OF MAHARASHTRA Vs. PRISM CEMENT LIMITED

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Civil Appeal No. 13928 OF 2015: Heard learned counsel for the parties at length.

(2.) The assessee-respondent Prism Cement Limited, a public limited company, invoked the extraordinary writ jurisdiction of the High Court, challenging the three trade circulars issued by the Commissioner of Sales Tax, Mumbai [In short 'Commissioner'] on 27/5/2002, 20/7/2002 and 8/2/2007 respectively and various notices issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax under Sec. 38 of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 [In short 'BST Act'] for revising the assessments of the assessee-respondent made for the assessment years 2002-2003 to 2004-2005. Consequentially, calling upon the assessee-respondent to pay/refund the exempted portion of the tax as per the provision of Package Scheme of Incentives 1993 [Hereinafter referred to as 'PSI 1993'] on the sale of goods effected in the course of inter-State trade or commerce.

(3.) The above writ petition has been allowed by the Division Bench of the High Court by the impugned judgment and order dtd. 30/8/2012 and it has been held that even after the amendment of Sec. 8(5) of the Central Sales Tax Act [In short 'CST Act'] by the Finance Act, 2002 with effect from 11/5/2002, the State Governments are empowered to grant total or partial exemption from tax payable on inter-State sales covered under Sec. 8(1) as also under Sec. 8(2) of the CST Act in public interest, subject to the fulfilment of requirements of Sec. 8(4) of the CST Act. Accordingly, the trade circulars and the notices impugned were quashed holding that the State of Maharashtra incorrectly proceeded to issue the same on the premise that the State Government had no power to grant total or partial exemption in respect of transactions covered under Sec. 8(2) of the CST Act after the 2002 amendment.