Balakrishna Ayyar, 7.-The Cosmopolitan Club, Madras, is a social and recreational association with a strength of some twelve hundred members or more. It was founded in 1873. In 1934 it was incorporated under section 26 of the Indian Companies Act, 1913. Where people foregather there is often a demand for refreshments and the Club supplies these at certain standard rates previously approved of. On the total amount of the bills in respect of the refreshments supplied to the members the State of Madras has been charging sales-tax under section 3 of the Madras General Sales-tax Act, 1939. On 22nd August, 1949, the Secretary of the Club wrote to the Government requesting them to exempt the sale of refreshments by the Club to its members from liability to pay sales-tax. By an order dated 21st September, 1949, the Government negatived the request. In paragraph 10 of the affidavit filed by the Honorary Secretary of the Club it is stated:

“The amount till now paid by the Club to the State of Madras is Rs. 10,198-3-11 and the petitioner submits that the levy of Sales-tax on the total value of the refreshments supplied to its members is ultra vires and illegal and the State of Madras had no jurisdiction or power to levy such tax."

In March, 1051, the Club filed two petitions in this Court. One, C.M.P. No. 3414 of 1951, was for the issue of a writ in the nature of a writ of certiorari;”

"Calling upon the respondent to send up the records of their proceedings in G.O. Ms. No. 2472, dated 21st September, 1949, Revenue Department, Government of Madras, in the matter of sales-tax on the supply of refreshments to the members by the petitioner and connected papers and quash the same as having been passed without jurisdiction."

The other, C.M.P. No. 3415 of 1951, was for the issue of

“a writ of mandamus or other appropriate writ or order directing the respondents to for bear from levying and collecting the sales-tax on the value of refreshments supplied to the members by the petitioner”.

Mack, J., who heard these petitions took the view that the supply of refresh- ments by the Club to its members did not constitute a sale withm the meaning of the Act and that the levy of sales-tax based on the assumption that the transaction was a sale was illegal. He allowed the petition for the issue of a writ of mandamus to direct the Government to forbear from levying and collecting sales-tax on the value of refreshments supplied by the Club to its members. He dismissed the application for the issue of a writ of certiorari as it was not pressed.

In the appeal before us the State seeks to canvass the correctness of the view of Mack, J., that sales-tax is not leviable on the value of the refreshments supplied by the Club to its members.

Before Mack, J., the Government took the preliminary objection that the petitions were incompetent, and, that objection was repeated before us. This is how the learned Government Pleader explained his view of the matter. The Sales-tax Act has set up a special hierarchy of tribunals at whose hands any person aggrieved by any levy made under the Act must seek redress. Under section 11 any assessee objecting to an assessment made on him may appeal to the prescribed authority. Under section 12 of the Board of Revenue and certain other authorities have been empowered to revise the orders of any subordinate authority, either suo motu or on application preferred within six months of the passing of the order complained of. It has also been held in the Province of Madras v. Satyanarayanamurthy1, that a suit can be instituted against the Government in respect of any levy made of purporting to be made under the Act. Therefore, the position is that the petitioning Club has an adequate alternative remedy both within the statute under which the levy was imposed and also outside it, and, in such a situation a petition for the issue of a writ does not lie.

In support of his argument he referred to the decisions in Adinarayana &38; Bros. v. State of M

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