TARACHAND PITAMBER PALAN Vs. STATE OF GUJARAT

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Rule. Service of rule is waived on behalf of the respondents. V. Petitioners are running a cinema house and are liable to be assessed to entertainment tax under the Gujarat Entertainments Tax Act, 1977. The cinema house is situated within Municipal Borough Bhuj. Dispute raised in this petition concerns the validity of the rates at which entertainment tax is being levied on the admission to the cinema house at Bhuj.

(2.) Sec. 3 of the Gujarat Entertainments Tax Act, 1977 which has bearing on the question raised reads as under :

(3.) Under Sec. 3 of the Gujarat Entertainments Tax Act, 1977 ('Act' for short) which is a charging section, tax is to be levied and paid to the State Government on every payment for admission to an entertainment at the rates prescribed therein. Separate rates have been prescribed for different local areas depending on the population of the said local area, which is to be determined on the basis of the preceeding census and notified by the State Government in the official gazettee. The highest rates have been prescribed where such population is more than 1 lakh and receding rates have been prescribed for local areas having population of more than 50,000 but not more than 1 lakh and other areas. The authorities entrusted to levy and collect the entertainment tax are seeking to recover entertainment tax from the petitioners in respect of entertainment provided at the cinema situated at Bhuj under clause (I) of Sec. 3(1 )(a), while the petitioners contend that their case falls within clause (II) of the aforesaid Section. Population of Bhuj as per the published figure of the last census, is 1,02,170.