ADITYA MILLS Vs. RAJASTHAN STATE ELECTRICITY BOARD JAIPUR

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE above four writ applications under Article 226 of the Constitution raise identical questions and therefore can be disposed of conveniently by a common judgment and we accordingly do so.

(2.) THE petitioner in Civil Writ Petition No. 1 of 1968: M/s. Aditya Mills Ltd. , madanganj-Kishengarh, District Ajmer is a public limited company and carries on business of manufacturing yarn etc. In exercise of its powers under Section 5 of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948 (which will hereinafter be called "the Supply act") the Government of Rajasthan constituted a State Electricity Board under the name, the Rajasthan State Electricity Board (which will hereinafter be called "the board" ). An agreement was entered into between the petitioner and the Board on 29-10-1963, for supply of high tension electricity to the petitioner by the Board, a copy of which has been placed on the record and has been marked as Ex. A. Clause 16 of the agreement consisting of three Sub-clauses (a), (b) and (c) which would be relevant for our purposes may be reproduced below:--

(3.) THE Board by its notification dated 26-7-66 published in the Rajasthan Gazette, extra ordinary dated 3-8-1966 decided to levy a surcharge on the supply of electricity to its consumers of the various categories mentioned in the notification. It was further mentioned in the notification that the surcharge would be applicable to the consumption charges of electricity commencing from August 1966, Among the categories of consumers the petitioner comes under the category of 'large industrial Loads' and the surcharge levied on the supply of electricity to industrial power consumers was fixed at the rate of 15 per cent.