JAI MARBLES PRIVATE LTD. Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this writ petition, the petitioner has challenged Clause (5) of the Exempt on Notification of sales tax dated 6.12.1990 issued by the Finance (Gr.I) Department, Govt. of Rajasthan, Jaipur, under Section 4 of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1954 (in short 'the Act of 1954'), which has been made effective from 1.4.1990 to 31.3.1995, inter alia on the ground that it is ultravires Article 14 of the Constitution of India and violative of the Industrial Policy and the Act of 1954.

(2.) INITIALLY , this writ petition was filed on 7.2.1992 and it was registered as SBCWP No. 2897/1992. Then, it was transferred to the Rajasthan Taxation Tribunal from where it was again transferred to this Court and thereafter, it has been again registered as SBCWP No. 2792/2001.

(3.) ON coming to know about the notification dated 6.12.1990 for sales tax exemption on local mineral based industries, the petitioner gave a letter dated 26.3.1991 (Anx.5) to the respondent No. 3 i.e. the seller, for refund of the sales tax. The respondent No. 3 in reply to the said letter wrote to the petitioner on 29.3.1991 (vide Anx.6) that it will refund the tax amount if the sales tax authority will refund to them at the time of assessment. Thereafter, the petitioner gave a notice of demand for justice dated 3.9.1991 (Anx.7) on the apprehension that the exemption may not be allowed on account of Clause (5) of the exemption notification dated 6.12.1990, according to which the dealer claiming exemption has to prove to the satisfaction of the assessing authority that he has neither charged nor demanded any tax on sale of such goods. It is stated in the writ petition that the notification was issued on 6.12.1990 and although it has been made effective from 1.4.1990 but still the seller could not have been insisted for not to charge or demand any tax as the same would have been contrary to the Act of 1954, according to which the dealer is under an obligation to charge sales tax from the purchaser.