EVEREADY INDUSTRIES INDIA LTD Vs. STATE OF ASSAM

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The tenor of the pleadings made in the present bunch of writ petitions and the oral arguments advanced by the learned counsel for the writ petitioners would go to show that the main grievance of the writ petitioners is in respect of the detention of the vehicles carrying tea at the inter-State check posts, on ground of non-production of the Agricultural Income Tax Clearance Certificate under section 47A of the Agriculture Income Tax Act, 1939 (as amended). The challenge to the constitutional validity of the provisions of section 47A of the Act as well as the circular dated 13.9.2000 issued by the Commissioner has been made in the present bunch of writ petitions as in the comprehension of the writ petitioners the aforesaid provisions of section 47A alone bears some resemblance to the power which has sought to be exercised by detention of the vehicles carrying tea.

(2.) Learned counsel for the petitioners has submitted that in the event this Court takes the view that under the provisions of section 47A or under any of the provisions of the Act, there is no power vested in the authority to detain the vehicles, the writ petitioners would not press for a decision on the validity of section 47A of the Act.

(3.) A perusal of the provisions of the Assam Agricultural Act, 1939 including section 47A thereof would go to show that no power has been conferred on the authority to detain vehicles carrying tea for non-production of the Tax Clearance Certificate visualised under section 47A. Section 47A of the Act requires production of a Tax Clearance Certificate issued by the competent authority; but there appears to be no provision in the Act empowering the authority to detain the vehicles or to resort to any other form of coercive action in the event such Tax Clearance Certificate is not produced at the check gates. In fact in the affidavit filed on behalf of the State in one of the cases, which has been treated to be a common affidavit in all the cases, there is no assertion of any such powers to detain vehicles for non-production of the Tax Clearance Certificates. On the contrary, the stand of the authority as reflected in the affidavit filed is that there has bee no detention of the vehicles carrying tea as asserted in the writ petitions.