B D ALLOYS Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Whether rejection of the petitioner's application for grant of eligibility certificate by the Lower Level Screening Committee and the Higher Level Screening Committee is vitiated due to violation of the principles of natural justice or the decisions taken by the two committees suffer from an error of law apparent on the face of the record is the question which arises for determination in this petition filed under Article 226 of the Constitution of India.

(2.) The petitioner is a proprietorship concern. It is registered as a dealer under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 (for short, "the 1973 Act") and is engaged in the manufacture and sale of cast iron castings, iron and steel and chilled rolls in the industrial unit set up at village Nasirpur, Tehsil and district Ambala. The application submitted on behalf of the petitioner under Rule 28-A(2) of the Haryana General Sales Tax Rules, 1975 (for short, "the 1975 Rules") for grant of eligibility certificate was rejected by the Lower Level Screening Committee on the ground of non-submission of change of land use certificate (for short, "CLU certificate"). The appeal filed by it against the decision of the Lower Level Screening Committee was dismissed by the Higher Level Screening Committee on the same ground.

(3.) The petitioner has prayed for quashing of the impugned decisions on the ground of violation of the rules of natural justice and arbitrariness/non-application of mind. In the writ petition, it has been averred that before rejecting the application filed under Rule 28-A on the ground of non-submission of CLU certificate, the Lower Level Screening Committee did not give opportunity to show that production of such certificate was necessary for grant of eligibility certificate. The petitioner has also challenged the order of assessment passed by the Excise and Taxation Commissioner-cum-Assessing Authority, Ambala, by alleging that during the pendency of the appeal filed by the petitioner against the decision of the Lower Level Screening Committee, the officer concerned could not have taken action for levy of tax.