ORDER

1. Leave granted. Heard learned counsel.

2. This appeal arises out of an order dated 11-11-1988 passed by the High Court of Punjab and Haryana in Civil Writ Petition No. 5039 of 1988 dismissing the writ petition of the appellant in limine.

3. The appellant herein is the Divisional Forest Officer, Timber Extension Division, Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, in charge of the Sales Depot at Nangal which is within the State of Punjab. The appellant is a registered dealer, as the expression is known to the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948, (hereinafter referred to as "the Act"). During the relevant assessment year, the appellant transacted more than one sale in favour of the respondent Punjab Export Corporation Ltd., Chandigarh, a government corporation. The appellant required of the buyer-Corporation to supply him declarations under Form ST XXII in order to claim statutory deduction. By then winding-up proceedings were on. An official liquidator stood appointed. The official liquidator instead of supplying those forms issued a certificate verifying the sales. But since this did not satisfy the legal requirements, the claim of the appellant for deduction was negatived by the assessing authority. The appeal of the appellant was dismissed by the appellate authority and finally the second appeal was dismissed by the Sales Tax Tribunal which necessitated the appellant to approach the High Court by means of a writ petition which was dismissed in limine. The effort before the High Court as also here is to direct the buyer-Corporation through its liquidator to supply Form ST XXII in order to enable the appellant claim deductions for the sales effected by the appellant as a registered dealer.

4. It is not denied that a deduction is claimable under the provisions of sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) of sub-section (2) of Section 5 of the Act. Rule 26 of the Punjab General Sales Tax Rules, 1949 provides the methodology of obtaining and filling Form ST XXII. Rule 26 is extracted below :

"26. (1) Any dealer, who wishes to deduct from his gross turnover the amount in respect of a sale on the grounds that he is entitled to make such deduction under the provisions of sub-clause (ii) of clause (a) of sub-section (2) of Section 5 shall, along with his return in Form ST VIII in respect of such a sale furnish C part of declaration in Form ST XXII duly filled up and signed by purchasing dealer or his agent.

(2) Any dealer registered under the Act shall apply to the appropriate Assessing Authority for the grant of declaration in Form ST XXII stating clearly his reasonable demand for a period of not more than six months disclosing the stock and details of declaration forms already in hand and also the date on which and the number in which he was last issued the declaration forms.

(3) If the Assessing Authority referred to in sub-rule (2) is satisfied that the requisition of the dealer is genuine and reasonable, he may issue him as many declaration forms as he may deem fit on prior payment of price of such forms to be fixed by the Government from time to time of such sum.

(4) A single declaration in Form ST XXII shall cover one or more than one transaction of sale, provided that in the latter case the total value of sale made to one registered dealer in one return period does not exceed twenty thousand rupees.

(5) The dealer to whom the declaration forms have been issued shall be responsible for their proper custody and use. If a declaration form, whether blank or completed, is lost either from the custody of any dealer or from the purchasing dealer.

(6) On receipt of report referred to in sub-rule (5) above, the said authority shall call upon the dealer to furnish a reasonable security by way of an indemnity bond in Form ST XXIX in respect of each lost form separately or in respect of all the lost forms collectively to safeguard against the misuse of the same.

(7) If the duly completed and signed declaration form is lost by the purchasing dealer in transit o