ORDER

Shivaraj V. Patil, J.-The appellant is a company engaged in the manufacture of various kinds of IMFL/potable liquor. For manufacture of its products, it requires raw materials such as rectified spirit, compound alcoholic preparation, cane juice spirit, grape spirit, malt spirit, barley malt, molasses, coal etc. It imports these raw materials into the octroi limits of Aurangabad Municipal Corporation, the respondent herein. The controversy raised in this appeal is confined to the rate of octroi duty levied on the rectified spirit imported by the appellant.

2. On the rectified spirit imported by the appellant, the local authorities had been charging octroi duty @ 1.5% falling under entry 37 of class III of the schedule "O" annexed to the Aurangabad City Municipal Corporation Octroi Rules (for short the Rules ) even before the establishment of the respondent-corporation which came into force on 1.3.1984. Thereafter also, it continued to collect octroi duty at the same rate. Surprisingly, the appellant received a letter dated 5th August, 1986 from the respondent stating that the rectified spirit which the appellant had been importing was chargeable to octroi duty @ 5% falling unde