STANDARD MOTOR UNION P LTD Vs. RTO KOTTAYAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This writ petition has been instituted on behalf of a private company by name the Standard Motor Union (P) Ltd. by its Managing Director. The prayers in the writ petition are (i) to issue a writ of certiorari or other appropriate writ to respondents 1 to 4 namely, the Regional Transport Officer, Kottayam, the State of Kerala, the Tahsildar, Kottayam and the Tahsildar (Tax Recovery Officer), Vaikom, calling up the records evidencing the proceedings of the said respondents for recovery from the petitioner of arrears of motor vehicles tax due in respect of eight stage carriage vehicles, whose registration numbers are mentioned in the writ petition and to quash the said proceedings, (ii) to declare that S.7 of the Kerala Revenue Recovery Act, 1968 is ultra vires and void on the ground that it is violative of Art.14 and 19 of the Constitution of India and (iii) to issue a writ of mandamus or such other appropriate writ or direction to respondents I to 4 compelling them to drop the tax recovery proceedings initiated against the petitioner company and its assets.

(2.) The eight of vehicles referred to in the writ petition admittedly belonged to the petitioner company and even now they stand registered in the name of the petitioner only. It is not denied ' that there are large arrears of motor vehicles tax outstanding as due in respect of those vehicles. According to the petitioner the vehicles had been sold by the company to the 5th respondent namely, the Meenachil Motor Workers' Cooperative Society Ltd. in 1964-65 but since only a small portion of the purchase price had been paid by the society the registration has not been transferred in the name of the purchaser. Whatever may be the reason for retaining the registration in the petitioner's name, so long as the petitioner is the registered owner of the motor vehicles in question the legal liability for payment of the tax in respect of these vehicles will be that of the petitioner under S.3(2) of the Kerala Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1963 (hereinafter referred to as the Act). The respondents are, therefore, well within their rights in proceeding against the petitioner for the realisation of the said arrears of motor vehicles tax.

(3.) It is then contended by the petitioner that even if the petitioner is liable for the arrears of tax the respondents can proceed to realise the said tax arrears only by the attachment and sale of the very same vehicles in respect of which the arrears of tax had accrued due and that other vehicles belonging to the petitioner company cannot be proceeded against for recovery of the said tax.