MANI Vs. REGIONAL TRANSPORT OFFICER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner in O.P. No. 1302 of 1979 is the appellant in the Writ Appeal. He purchased vehicle KLD 4745 in public auction. He got a sale certificate on 29-11-1976 from the seller. According to him he transported the vehicle by another goods vehicle to his place on 30-11-1976. He filed an application under S.5 of the Kerala Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1976 (in short, the Act) for exemption from payment of fax for the period from 29-11-1976 to 1-1-1978. Exemption was granted for the first quarter ending by 31-3-1977. For the rest of the period exemption was negatived. In the O. P. the petitioner assailed the order passed by the statutory authorities, evidenced by Exts. P2, P4 and P6. Kochu Thommen J. by judgment dated 8-3-1982, dismissed the O.P. The learned Judge held that S.5 does not postulate an application for more than one quarter unless it is for one full financial year and that one has to make an application for the first month or the first two months of a quarter or for one quarter or for the whole financial year. The learned Judge also held that if exemption is sought for any other period, such application is not consistent with the terms of S.5, and aa application which does not fit in with the said provision cannot be effective or sustainable. In this view, the plea of the petitioner was negatived and the O.P. was dismissed. The petitioner in the O. P. has come up in appeal.

(2.) We heard counsel for the appellant, as also the learned Government Pleader, who appeared for the respondent. S.5(1) of the Act is to the following effect: