SOMA-BSCPL JV Vs. STATE OF RAJASTHAN

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY this writ petition, the petitioner is challenging the order/direction dated 04. 12. 2007 (Annex.-P/13, P/14) and order/direction dated 01. 12. 2007 (Annex.-P/15 ). It is further prayed by the petitioner that actions, conducts and functionings of respondent No. 5 contractor may be held illegal, unjust and unconstitutional in collection of tax from the registered dealer (like the petitioner) and in insistence of submission of copy of VAT invoice/invoice. The petitioner has also prayed that tax collected illegally so far by respondent No. 5 contractor from the petitioner may be ordered to be deposited immediately with the respondent department of Commercial Taxes and the same may be ordered to be adjusted from the ultimate tax liability of the petitioner.

(2.) THE facts narrated in the writ petition are that the petitioner is a joint venture created by two companies viz. , SOMA Enterprise Ltd. and B. Seenaiah Company Ltd, both registered under the provisions of the Companies Act, 1956. THE petitioner is involved in construction of roads under the contract awarded by the National Highway Authority of India (in short, hereinafter "the NHAI") and, at present, the petitioner has undertaken the work of construction of "4 way lane" between the village Bakeria (District Udaipur) to village Gogunda (District Udaipur. Respondent No. 3 awarded a contract to respondent No. 5 under the contract-agreement dated 20. 10. 2007 for tax collection from unregistered dealers only on the sale of some material like Gitti (blast), morrum, khanda, rubble, etc. As per the petitioner, respondent No. 5 is illegally impeding the vehicles of the petitioner knowing it well that the petitioner is registered dealer and as per terms of the contract-agreement, respondent No. 5 is not at all entitled to collect tax from registered dealers because admittedly all the registered dealers are always assessed separately by way of framing the annual/quarterly assessments independently. THE petitioner has placed on record Annex.-P/1, Annex.-P/2 and Annex.-P/3 in respect of registration certificates issued in its favour under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1994 and Rajasthan Entry Tax Act, 1999, respectively.

(3.) IT is submitted by learned counsel for the petitioner that again a detailed representation was filed by the petitioner on 13. 12. 2007 but respondent No. 5 is illegally detaining the petitioner's trucks and harassing the vehicle drivers and misbehaving with them, therefore, the work of the construction of 4-lane national highway road is being frustrated and the respondent No. 5 is illegally collecting the tax from the vehicles, therefore, it is prayed that it should be stopped. The petitioner is repeatedly filing representations high-lighting the entire position that respondent No. 5 is collecting tax illegally but the respondents have not given any heed to the petitioner's prayer for restraining respondent No. 5.