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IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
[DIVISION BENCH]
Before
The Hon’ble Mr. Justice Hemant Gupta
The Hon’ble Ms. Justice Ritu Bahri
C.W.P. No. 17240 of 2011
Bhagat Ravi Dass Transport Company Regd. Ludhiana & Anr.
v.
State of Punjab & Anr.
{Decided on 01/02/2013}
(A) Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2011--Stage Carrier Permit--The imposition of higher rate of tax for the omnibuses as compared to mini buses and State Transport Undertakings does not suffer from the vice of discrimination and Article 14 of the Constitution of India--Constitution of India, 1950, Art.14. (Para 33)
(B) Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2011--Levy of Tax--Reasonable Classification--Imposing levy of tax on the basis of "weight-cum-value" the levy continued to be compensatory in nature and was within the Entry 57 List II of VIIth Schedule of the Constituting--The levy was not violative of Article 14. (Para 32)
(C) Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1924--Levy of Tax--Reasonable Classification--The imposition of a tax or a levy is not discriminatory, arbitrary or unreasonable if it is founded on a reasonable classification and the classification is based on intelligible differentia which distinguish persons or class of persons that a group together from the others left out that group--Such a differentia must have a rationale relation to the objects sought to be achieved by the statute in question--If the object sought to be achieved is reasonable then there is no violation of Article 14 of the Constitution--Constitution of India, 1950, Art.14. (Para 31)
Ms. Ritu Bahri, J.: - This petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India is for issuance of a writ of Certiorari declaring subsection (1) and (8) of Section 3 of the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1924 as substituted by Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2007 (Punjab Act No. 7 of 2008) and sub-section (8) of Section 3 of the Act as substituted by Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2011 (Act. No. 22 of 2011) (Annexure P/5) and Section 17 of the said Act as inserted vide Punjab Act No. 2 of 2008 (Annexure P/4) as ultra vires and unconstitutional being violative of Article 14 and 19 (1) (g) of the Constitution of India.
2. Before referring to the controversy raised in the present petition it is necessary to notice the background of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 with effect from 1.7.1989. After this Act came into force the procedure for grant of Stage Carriage has been liberalized. The permit is granted as per Section 80 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
3. A scheme was formulated under Chapter 6 of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 and published in the Gazette notification dated 9.8.1990 (Annexure P1). This scheme was further modified while exercising powers under Section 102 of the Act vide Government Gazette notification dated 21.10.1997 (P2). The owner of the bus after grant of the permit is required to use the vehicle in accordance with the condition of permit granted and counter-signed by the competent authority as per Section 66 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. This Rule is applicable to State Transport Undertakings and private operators with equal force. The State Transport Undertakings and the private operators can get a motor vehicle registered under the provisions of the Act and Rules, but when the motor vehicle is to be used as a transport vehicle such carriage permit is to be granted by the State Transport Commissioner, Punjab.
4. The petitioners are engaged in the business of passenger road transport service. They are holding a legal stage carriage permit for running their vehicle on Ludhiana- Abohar, Ludhiana-Ferozepur, Ludhiana-Ropar and Ludhiana- Khamano routes. The permit holders can get the conditions of stage carriage permits varied for the purpose of extension or increase of trips under Sub Section 3 of Section 80 of the Act.
5. The Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1924 was enacted for the purpose of levying tax on motor vehicles as defined under Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, now the Motor Vehicle Act, 1988.
6. The Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act 1993 came into force with effect from 28.5.1993. By Section 3(f) special road tax was levied on the motor vehicles which were being used as transport vehicles. This tax was in addition to what was being levied under Section 3 of the Act. The tax under Section 3 as well as under Section 3(f) of the 1924 Act was levied on State Transport Undertakings as well as private operators at the same rates. The Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act 2007 was further amended whereby Section 3A and Section 3(f) of Punjab Act No. 4 of 1924 were omitted and Section 3 was substituted. The State of Punjab specified the rates of motor vehicles tax to be levied with effect from 22.11.2007 (Annexure P3) as under:-
“12.Stage Carriage Buses Rate of Motor registered in State of Punjab
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vehicles Tax per Km
per vehicle per dayin Rs.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I. Big buses 2.25
(a) Ordinary Buses
(b) Ordinary H.V AC Buses (3x2 seats) 1.00
(c) Integral Coach (2x2 seats) Buses 0.50
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7. Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2007 was publish
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