Mr. Hemant Gupta, J.:- This order shall dispose of aforesaid two writ petitions i.e. CWP No.18228 of 2012 and CWP No.3231 of 2013 wherein the challenge is to the notifications dated 22.11.2007 and 31.08.2012, whereby the motor vehicles having Contract Carriage Permits and All India Tourist Permits, registered in the States other than the State of Punjab inter-alia on the ground that tax imposed is prohibitive, expropriatory and discriminatory thus liable to be set aside.

2. The petitioners are the owners of tourist vehicles registered in States other than in the State of Punjab. Some of the petitioners have Special Contract Carriage Permit, whereas some have All India Tourist Permits. It is pointed out that the vehicles owned by the petitioners pass through the State of Punjab for ferrying the tourists to other States and are liable to pay tax in terms of the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1924 (for short ‘the Act’). It is pointed out that Section 3 of the Act was amended by the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2007 since replaced by the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation (Amendment) Act, 2007 (Punjab Act No.7 of 2008). In exercise of the powers in respect of imposition of tax under the amended provisions of the Act, the State has specified rate of motor vehicle tax w.e.f. 22.11.2007. As per Entry No.13, the Tourist Permit Vehicles registered in the State of Punjab are liable to pay Motor Vehicles Tax per seat per annum @ Rs.6000/- for ordinary & deluxe buses, Rs.5000/- for Air Conditioned buses and Rs.4000/- for integral coach. On the other hand, the vehicles registered in other States were liable to pay Motor Vehicles Tax per seat per annum @ Rs.2000/- for ordinary buses, Rs.3000/- for deluxe buses and Rs.4000/- for Air Conditioned buses. Vide notification dated 31.08.2012, the amendments were carried out in the notification dated 22.11.2007. The impugned entries in the notifications dated 22.11.2007 and 31.08.2007 read as under:

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NOTIFICATION NOTIFICATION

22.11.2007 31.08.2012

xx xx xx xx xx xx xx xx

13. (a) Tourist Permits Rate of Rate of 13. Tourist Rate of Motor Vechicle registered Motor Motor Buses Vehicle Tax per

in Punjab Vehicles Vehicle seat per annum

Tax per Tax per in Rs.

seat per seat per

annum in annum in

Rs. (Non Air- Rs. (Air-

Conditioned) Conditioned)

(i) Motor Cab 750/- 500/- Ordinary 7000/-

(ii) Maxi Cab 750/- 500/- Deluxe 7000/-

(b) Tourist Buses Rate of Motor Air 7000/-

Vehicle Tax Condit-

per seat per ioned

annum in Rs.

Ordinary 6000/- Integral 7000/-

Coach

Deluxe 6000/-

Air-Conditioned 5000/-

Integral Coach 4000/-

14. Vehicles plied on Rate of Motor 14. Rate of Rate of

contract carriage Vehicle Tax per Motor Vehicles Motor

permits or on All day (on 24 hours Tax per day (on Vehicles India Tourist Permits basis) in Rs. 24 hours basis) Tax per

or on any other similar in Rs. Quarter permits registered in in Rs.

other States entering

the State of Punjab

Motor Cabs 300/- Motor Cabs 200/- 6000/-

Maxi Cabs 600/- Maxi Cabs 400/- 12000/-

Ordinary Buses 2000/- Ordinary 3000/- -

Buses

Deluxe Buses 3000/- Deluxe 4000/- -

Buses

Air Conditioned 4000/- Air 5000/- -

Buses Condit-

ioned

Buses

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3. Learned counsel for the petitioners have vehemently argued that the classification i.e. vehicles registered in the State of Punjab vis-à-vis a vehicle registered in the other States is discriminatory, arbitrary and without any reasonable nexus with the objective to be achieved and thus, different rates of tax based on such classification is violative