MOHAL LAL Vs. COLLECTOR OF BULANDSHAHR AND ANOTHER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is Writ petition No. 1212 of 1953. It is connected with writ petitions Nos. 1194, 1213, 1215 to 1219 and 1267 to 1271 of 1955 and No. 310 of 1956. All these writ petitions are u/Art. 226 of the Constitution. All of them are connected together and are being disposed of by this judgment as they are based on similar facts and involve the same question.

(2.) The Petitioners in all these writ petitions were the share holders of a company called the District Syndicate Bulandshahr Ltd. (hereinafter called the company). The said company was a private limited company with an authorised share capital of Rs, 5 lacs divided into 500 shares of Rs. 1000.00 each. The liability of each member of the company was limited to the shares purchased by him. In the year 1948 the UP Government appointed the said company as the sole importer of cloth in the district of Bulandshahr. The company worked as such up to the end of 1949 when the Govt, stopped supplying cloth to it. As a result, on 19-8-1951 the members of the company passed a resolution by which the company went into voluntary liquidation. These liquidation proceedings are still going on. At the time of liquidation the company had 31 share holders holding fully paid up shares. The Sales Tax Officer, Bulandshahr assessed the company for the business done by it during 1948-49 and 1949-50 for an amount of about Rs. 65,000.00 . The amount assessed not having been paid the Sales Tax Officer sent a requisition to the Collector for its realisation as land revenue. The Collector there after proceeded to realise it as such, and issued a notice to each of the share holders. The entire contents of this notice which constitute Annexure "A" to the counter affidavit are reproduced below:-

(3.) Whereas a sum of Rs. 64,978/11 /9 is due against the Bulandshahr cloth Dealers Syndicate Ltd. as arrears of Sales Tax for 1948- . 49 and 1949-50.,