RAGHUWAR DAYAL Vs. MUNICIPAL BOARD BARI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THIS is a writ application by seven bus operators on the Dholpur-Baseri and Dholpur-Sar-Muthra routes, under Art. 226 of the Constitution, and raises the question of the legality of certain taxes imposed by the Bari Municipality in respect of the motor vehicles passing through it.

(2.) THE case of the petitioners, briefly put, is that the aforesaid municipality has framed certain bye-laws which are called 'bye-laws for the Regulation of Motor Stands within the limits of the Bari Municipality, 1955' whereunder by bye-law (6), every motor vehicle entering within the limits of this municipality is required to pay what is called 'adda fee' in accordance with schedule I appended to the bye-laws, and by other bye-laws being Nos. (9), (10) and (11) the driver of every motor vehicle is required as soon as he wishes to enter the limits of this municipality to put down his signature in a register in the office of the municipality and then and there pay a tax which is called trip-tax in accordance with schedule II appended to the bye-laws, and it is further provided that no motor vehicle shall be entitled to enter the limits of the municipality unless this tax is paid.

(3.) FOR the reasons mentioned above, we have come to the conclusion that both the Adda fee as welt as the trip-tax are illegal and cannot be allowed to be charged by this municipality as being in direct violation of the provisions of sec. 21 of the Act of 1951.