A.S. OKA, J.

1. As per the directions of the Apex Court in Special Leave Petition Nos. 3746 of 2014 and 3747 of 2014 passed on 19th September 2014, priority is given to the final hearing of these two Petitions. The following questions are involved in both the Petitions.

(i) Whether the Sodexo Meal Vouchers are goods for the purposes of levy of Octroi and LBT?

(ii) Whether a Municipal Corporation constituted under the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 is entitled to levy and/or collect Octroi or Local Body Tax (LBT) on Sodexo Meal Vouchers in accordance with the provisions of the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 and the Rules framed thereunder?

2. The Petitioner Company is conducting a business of providing preprinted Sodexo Meal Vouchers (For short “the said Vouchers”). The case made out in the Petitions is that the Petitioner Company enters into a contract with its customers for issuing the said vouchers. The customers of the Petitioner in turn distribute the said vouchers to their employees who are the actual users of the said vouchers. It is stated that the Petitioner Company has contracts with various affiliates such as restaurants, departmental stores, shops, etc. Under the affiliate contracts, the affiliates are required to provide food and other items on presentation of the said vouchers by the users. The affiliates are bound to honour vouchers once presented by the users. The affiliates after receiving the said vouchers, present the same to the Petitioner Company. On receipt of the vouchers, the Petitioner reimburses the affiliates after deducting service charges.

3. The case made out in the Petition is that the Petitioner Company has obtained certificate of authorization from the Reserve Bank of India under Section 7 of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (for short “the said Act of 2007”) to operate a payment system for issue of meal and gift vouchers in the form of 'paper based vouchers' and 'smart meal cards' with effect from 25th June 2009. In these two Petitions, we are concerned with the paper based vouchers.

4. The learned senior counsel appearing for the Petitioner has made extensive submissions. He invited our attention to the provisions of Pune Municipal Corporation Octroi Rules, 2008 (for short “the Octroi Rules”). He also invited our attention to the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act, 1949 (for short “the Municipal Corporations Act”) and the Bombay Provincial Municipal Corporation (LBT) Rules, 2010 (for short “the LBT Rules”). He urged that the said vouchers are payment instructions or payment instruments issued under a payment system operated under the said Act of 2007 as per the authorization received from the Reserve Bank of India. He submitted that under both the Octroi Rules and the LBT Rules, the taxes can be collected on the goods. Though the definition of the goods under the Municipal Corporations Act does not throw any light, he invited our attention to the definition of the goods under the other enactments. He pointed out that the Octroi or LBT can be levied on the consumption, use or sale of goods within the limits of Municipal Corporations. He urged that the said vouchers are a medium to acquire any article for consumption, use or sale and the said vouchers are not capable of consumption, use or sale by themselves. He submitted that the said vouchers are meant to acquire the goods which can be consumed, used or sold. He urged that the vouchers are only a medium of payment. He submitted that the said vouchers are akin to lottery tickets which are held not to be goods. He relied upon a decision of the Apex Court in the case of Sunrise Associates vs. NCT of Delhi, (2006) 5 SCC 603. He relied upon a decision of the Apex Court in the case of R.D. Saxena vs. Balram Prasad Sharma, (2000) 7 SCC 264. He urged that the said vouchers can be equated with the papers and files in possession of a legal practitioner which were held not to be goods. He placed relian