RAJ BREWERIES LIMITED Vs. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD Mr. Tulzapurkar and Mr. Andhyarujina for the petitioners in these petitions. Mr. Chandurkar appears for respondent Nos. 1 and 2 and Mr. Deodhar appears for respondent Nos. 3 and 4.

(2.) ALL these petitions seek a direction through prayer Clause (a) to prohibit respondent No. 1 Government of India (for the Canteen Stores Department of Ministry of Defence) from withholding the payments of the amounts which are due and which may become due to the petitioners on the basis of the notices issued by the Income Tax Authorities (respondent Nos. 3 and 4 to these petitions ).

(3.) THE petitioners other than the petitioners in Writ Petition Nos. 1259 of 2001 and 1261 of 2001 are companies with dominant shareholding by M/s. Shaw Wallace and Company (for short "swc" ). Thus, in the case of one M/s. Pampasar Distillry Limited, 72% of its shares are held by SWC. One Central Distillery and Breweries Limited, which is one of the petitioners, has 98% of its shares held by SWC. Three other petitioners viz. Maharashtra Distilleries Limited, Raj Breweries Limited and VRV Breweries and Bottling Industries Limited have 100% of their shares held by SWC. All these petitioners supply Indian Manufactured Foreign Liquor ("imfl" for short) to respondent No. 1 i. e. Canteen Stores Department of the Ministry of Defence, Government of India. Their submission is that their income is independent of that of SWC and, therefore, if SWC is in default of any amounts as arrived at by its Assessing Officer, the recovery cannot be transferred and affected against them. The petitioners in Writ Petition Nos. 1259 and 1261 of 2001 are independent tie-up units