ASSOCIATED CEMENT CO. LTD Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner has challenged the constitutional validity of Section 3(i) of the Punjab Passengers and Goods Taxation Act, 1952 (as applicable to Haryana). It has also challenged the levy of passenger tax and has prayed that the proceedings taken by the respondents to recover the passenger tax from it be quashed.

(2.) IN the writ petition, as it was originally filed, the petitioner had challenged the jurisdiction of the respondents to levy passenger tax. On March 23, 1993, the Deputy Advocate General, Haryana, invited the attention of the Court to the provisions contained in the Punjab Passengers and Goods Taxation (Haryana Amendment and Validation) Act, 1988. Thereafter the petitioner applied for amendment of the writ petition which was accepted on 17.5.1993. This is how the amendment made in the Act of 1952 has been challenged in the writ petition.

(3.) THE Act of 1952 was enacted by the legislature with a view to provide for levying tax on passengers and goods carried by roads in certain motor vehicles. The present State of Haryana came into existence with effect from 1.11.1966 and along with other legislative instruments, the Act of 1952 was also adopted by the newly created State. The provisions relating to levy of passenger tax on vehicles used by Companies to carry their employees to factory area were challenged before this Court in M/s. Bharat Steel Tubes Ltd. v. The State of Haryana, A.I.R 1977 Punjab and Haryana 289. A Full Bench upheld the validity of the Section 2(f), Section 2(i) and Section 3 of the Act of 1952. The Full Bench also held that the levy of tax on the Company which provides bus to its employees for going to the factory area was legally justified. It appears that the decision of the Full Bench has been reversed by the Supreme Court on 31.8.1987. This fact has been revealed from the file No. Ka-56-2-00-50 produced by the learned Assistant Advocate General. At page No. 11 of the file there is a reference to the decision of the Supreme Court dated 31.8.1987 in M/s. Bharat Steel Tubes' case (supra) and the decision of the Government to bring about validating legislation so as to remove the defect as pointed out in the judgment of the Supreme Court. The Governor of Haryana promulgated Punjab Passengers and Goods Taxation (Haryana Amendment and Validation) Ordinance, 1987 which was subsequently replaced by the Punjab Passengers and Goods Taxation (Haryana Amendment and Validation) Act No. 2 of 1988.