TULUNADU FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT Vs. REGIONAL TRANSPORT OFFICER AND THE DEPUTY COMMISSIONER FOR TRANSPORT SHIMOGA DIVISION

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WRIT petitioner is a financier who had financed certain amounts to a registered motor vehicle - a maxi cab bearing CTX No. 6435 registered with the 1st respondent office of the Regional Transport Officer, Udupi.

(2.) IT appears the vehicle was seized by the petitioner for non-payment of the borrowed amount by the respondents and took possession of the vehicle.

(3.) IT is the version of the petitioner that he had submitted a communication and thereafter he had surrendered the documents of the vehicle with the 1st respondent end that had also been accepted by the 1st respondent. It is also the further case of the petitioner that the petitioner had indicated the place of parking of the vehicle for enquiry etc. , by the authority. It appears that the authorities had inspected the place of such parking of the vehicle as on 28. 2. 2003 and the Motor Vehicle Inspector had reported that the vehicle was not found in the place. It is thereafter that the 1st respondent took action by issuing a show-cause notice dated 26. 4. 2003 calling upon the petitioner to show cause as to why tax should not be demanded from the petitioner for the period 1. 6. 1995 onwards as the vehicle was not found in the place where it was supposed to have been stationary. Version of the petitioner is that a reply to this, inter alia, pointed out that as the vehicle had become not road worthy, it was sold as scrap and in terms of a reply dated May'03, and sought for dropping of the proceedings. The said reply was not accepted and petitioner was called upon to take steps to comply with the requirements of law, if the vehicle was not road worthy, then for seeking cancellation of the registration certificate etc. , in terms of a reply dated 27. 1. 2005. This was followed by the demand dated 31-5-2005 calling upon the petitioner to pay taxes for the period from 1-7-1995 up to 30-6-2005 totaling a sum of Rs. 1,88,046/- and penalty of a sum of Rs. 37,610/- in all demand for Rs. 2,25,656/-; that the amount should be deposited within seven days from the date of receipt of the notice failing which action in accordance with law will be taken.