WOOD POLYMER LIMITED Vs. BILLIMORA NAGAR PALIKA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioner is a company incorporated under the Indian Companies Act 1956 and is engaged in manufacturing laminated sheets. It has got its factory at Billimora.In order to manufacture laminated sheets it has been importing paper which is used as one of the raw materials for the manufacturer of its product Billimora Municipality which is the respondent charges the petitioner octroi duty in the paper which it imports for the purpose of manufacturing its product. It is charged on the price of the imported paper as well as on the excise duty which the petitioner pays to the manufacturer of that imported commodity.

(2.) It is the case of the petitioner that after laminated sheets are manufactured it exports them out of Billimora. The petitioner claims that the Billimora Municipality is unlawfully refusing to refund to it the octroi duty paid by it on imported paper which is used by it as raw material for manufacturing laminated sheets which in their turn are exported out of Billimora octroi limits. Rule 7 of the Octroi rules of Billimora Municipality requires an importer to produce the original invoice and to make a declaration. It does not provide for refund of octroi duty paid on raw materials imported by a manufacturer into Billimora for manufacturing some other product which it exports out of Billimora. Therefore the first contention which Mrs. Mehta who appears on behalf of the petitioner has raised is that rule 7 of the Billimora Municipal Octroi Rules and Bye laws is ultra vires sec. 99 (1) (iv) and sec. 275 (1)(1) of the Gujarat Municipalities Act 1963.

(3.) In order to examine the contention raised by Mrs. Mehta it is necessary to find out whether there is an obligation on the municipality to refund octroi duty paid under the circumstances under which the petitioner is required to pay it. Unless there is an absolute obligation the petitioner cannot claim the refund of the octroi duty. Sec. 99 empowers a municipality to impose taxes specified therein. Clause(iv) of sub-sec.(1) of sec. 99 which is material for the present purpose reads as follows: