STARLINE AGENCY Vs. NABAJIT DAS

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Whether Value Added Tax (in short, 'VAT') is different in nature from sales tax and whether the requirement of furnishing of Sales Tax Clearance Certificate in a tender process would, since after enactment of the Value Added Tax Act, mean VAT Clearance Certificate or not? Whether Sales Tax Clearance Certificate is, by its very nature, different from VAT Clearance Certificate? Whether the requirement of submission of VAT Clearance Certificate on supply of woolen blankets can be said to be fulfilled on the submission of VAT Registration Certificate granted under a scheme of composition of the fiscal statute in respect of a works contract? What is the scope of interference in a writ appeal with an order passed in the writ petition dismissing the appeal where a new plea is wholly barred from being raised in a writ appeal if the plea was not taken in the writ petition? What is the scope of judicial review in contractual matters? These are the prominent questions, which have to be answered in this appeal.

(2.) The material facts, leading to this appeal, may, in brief, be set out as follows:

(3.) As the State Respondents decided to allot the work of supply of woolen blankets to the present Appellant, Respondent No. 1 filed another writ petition, under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, which gave rise to WP(C) No. 5862 of 2009, the case of the Respondent No. 1 being, in brief, thus: The writ Petitioner (i.e., Respondent No. 1) came to learn that on 17-11-2009, a meeting had been held for taking a decision in the matter of allotment of supply work of woolen blankets and, on request made by the Respondent No. 1, Respondent No. 3 provided the Respondent No. 1 with a copy of the minutes of the meeting, which, on being examined by the Respondent No. 1, revealed that a decision had been taken, in the meeting held on 17-11-2009, to award the contract for supply of woolen blankets to the Appellant @ Rs. 235/- per woolen blanket. The Respondent No. 1 accordingly filed the second writ petition seeking to get set aside and quashed the decision, which had been taken by the State Respondents/authorities concerned to allot the contract to the Appellant and, further, for a direction to be issued to the State Respondents/authorities concerned to allot the contract, in question, to the Respondent No. 1.