ASSOCIATED CEMENT COMPANY LIMITED Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These three petitions between common parties by and large raise common or similar questions of law and facts and they can be conveniently dealt with together and disposed of by this common judgment obviously with the concurrence or the learned common counsels appearing in these matters.

(2.) In order to understand what the controversies are some facts are required to be closely noted. The common petitioner is the Associated Cement Companies Limited having its cement works at various places in India. One of such factories is known as Dwarka Cement Works and it is situated within the limits of the respondent No. 2 Dwarka Nagar Panchayat which is a body corporate constituted under the provisions of the Gujarat Panchayats Act 1951 (hereinafter referred to as the Act for brevitys sake). Under the Act the Respondent-Panchayat is entitled to levy various taxes by virtue of the power conferred on this Panchayat under sec. 178 of the Act. The taxes are house tax octroi entertainment tax etc. The State Government has made Gujarat Gram and Nagar Panchayats Taxes and Fees Rules 1964 but in order to facilitate the working of recovery of these taxes some other rules are also made and they are styled as Gujarat Panchayats (Payment of Lump-sum Contribution by Factories in lieu of Taxes) Rules 1964 As the name itself suggests the provision is made to enable the Panchayats to recovery and the factories to pay a lump-sum in lieu of various taxes. Sec. 179 of the Act is a substantive provision which deals with this lump-sum contribution. Said sec. 179 reads as follows:

(3.) The legislature has left the procedural aspect of this substantive provisions to the rule-making authority namely the Government Rules 3 and 4 of the above named Rules are reproduced hereinbelow: