MYSORE CEMENT LTD Vs. STATE OF MADHYA PRADESH

JUDGEMENT

(1.) In these writ petitions the question of law being common they were heard analogously and are disposed of by this common order. For the sake of clarity and convenience we shall adumbrate the facts of W.P. No. 669 of 2002.

(2.) THE petitioner No. 1 is a public limited company having its cement manufacturing unit at Narasinghgarh, District Damoh. The petitioner No. 2 is the Joint President of the petitioner No. 1 company. The petitioner No. 1 company has a captive power plant for generation of power for use in the cement manufacturing plants. The diesel is one of the raw materials for generation of power and also for use in machineries in quarrying limestone. Diesel is specified as raw material in the registration certificate granted to the petitioner under the Madhya Pradesh Commercial Tax Act, 1994 (in short, 'the 1994 Act') and under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (in short, 'the 1956 Act').

(3.) ACCORDING to the writ petitioner the notification issued on December 26, 2001 is violative of Articles 301, 303, 304 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India which provide for freedom of trade, commerce and intercourse throughout the territory of India and stipulate restrictions of the legislative powers of the State with regard to trade and commerce. A reference has been made to proviso to Article 304 to highlight that the said provision prohibits amendment in the Act without the Bill or Amendment being introduced without the previous sanction of the President. It is contended that the notification issued by the State Government is a delegated piece of legislation and, therefore, it is ultra vires, void and non est. It is further put forth that Section 4 -A of the Entry Tax Act delegating power to the State Government for levying of entry tax on raw material used or consumed in the manufacture of other goods at a rate higher than the general rate of tax on sale to consumer is without any policy and bereft of the guidelines and hence, violative of Article 14 of the Constitution. There is no rationale or justification in conferring such unbridled power to the State Government and same smacks of arbitrariness, unreasonableness and exposes unguided nature of delegation of power.