JUDGMENT

P.R. Ramachandra Menon, C.J. - The constitutional validity of Section 13(1) of the Chhattisgarh Upkar Adhiniyam, 1981 (for short 'the 1981 Act') is challenged in this writ petition. There is also a challenge against the demand notices dated 19.06.2014 and 11.07.201 whereby a total sum of Rs. 49,47,27,587/- is demanded towards the arrears of Energy Development Cess (for short, 'the EDC') and interest payable for the period from October, 2007 to January, 2014.

2. We heard Shri Naveen Kumar, the learned counsel for the Petitioner-Company supported by Shri Ashish Shrivastava, and Shri Siddharth Dubey, the learned Deputy Government Advocate representing the State/Respondents.

3. The sequence of events is as follows: The Madhya Pradesh Upkar Adhiniyam, 1981 obtained the assent of the President on 16.12.1981 and it was published in the Madhya Pradesh Gazette (Extraordinary) dated 12.01.1982; by virtue of which the said enactment was given life as Act No. 1 of 1982 in the erstwhile undivided State of Madhya Pradesh, from which the State of Chhattisgarh was carved out in the month of November, 2000. After formation of the State as above, the Madhya Pradesh Upkar Adhiniyam, 1981 and the Madhya Pradesh Electricity Duty Act, 1949 (for short 'the Act, 1949') came to be adopted by this State and necessary notification has been issued bringing the above Acts into force, insofar as the State is concerned.

4. The Petitioner-Company is engaged in the business of manufacture of steel at its plant in the Raigarh District. Petitioner-Company obtained 'Distribution licence' from the Chhattisgarh State Electricity Regulatory Commission as per Annexure P/4 dated 29.11.2005 for distribution of electricity in the Jindal Industrial Park Limited to 70 industrial consumers with a maximum demand not exceeding 299 MW in the village Tumidih and Punjipathra of Gharghoda Tahsil in Raigarh District. Pursuant to the said licence, it is stated that the Petitioner-Company has been supplying/selling electrical energy to the above industrial units in its capacity as a 'Distribution licencee' (paragraph 8.1 to 8.4 of the writ petition).

5. The Chhattisgarh Upkar Adhiniyam, 1981 virtually consists of five different parts. Part I deals with the "Energy Development Cess", Part II deals with "Urban Development Cess", Part III deals with "Cess on Transfer of Vacant Land and Land Used for the Purpose of Agriculture", and Part V deals is in respect of the head "Miscellaneous", which contains Section 13, dealing with the power to make rules and Section 14 as to the power to remove difficulties. As per the original scheme of the Act, under Part I, the liability to satisfy the Energy Development Cess was cast upon every 'Distributor' of electrical energy, subject to the exceptions specified in Section 4, which was to be satisfied at the rate of 10 paise per unit (as per CG Amendment Act 19 of 2010). Initially, it was 1 paise per unit, which came to be enhanced to 5 paise per unit, as per the CG Act No. 28 of 2004 and subsequently, it came to be enhanced to 10 paise per unit, as per the CG Act No. 19 of 2010. As per the CG Act 28 of 2004, simultaneous to enhancement of the cess from 1 paise to 5 paise, mentioned in Section 3(1) of the 1981 Act, a new provision was also inserted as Section 3(1-a), whereby liability was cast upon every 'Producer' of electrical energy as well, to satisfy the cess at the rate of 10 paise per unit on the electrical energy sold or supplied to a consumer or consumed by himself or his employees by his captive power unit or diesel or other generator set of more than 100 KW capacity during any month, subject to the exceptions carved out as given in the proviso. Similar exception was already there in respect of Section 3(1) of the 1981 Act, whereby the liability was cast upon the 'Distributor' of the electrical energy as mentioned in the proviso thereunder.

6. Though there was no challenge from the part of the distributors of electrical energy, wh