ORDER:

The petitioner is the owner of two contract carriage vehicles bearing Nos.AP05TF2258 and AP05TF2260. The petitioner is liable to pay quarterly motor vehicle tax of these vehicles. It is the case of the petitioner that he had paid the quarterly motor vehicle tax up to the quarter ending 31.12.2020. Thereafter, he had not used the vehicles or kept them for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh on account of Covid-19 pandemic, and consequently, did not pay the motor vehicle tax for the quarters ending 31.03.2021 and 30.06.2021 and 30.09.2021.

He is aggrieved by the action of the respondents in seeking to levy a penalty of Rs.6,00,000/- and raise a demand for the payment of the motor vehicle tax for these three quarters.

Section 3 of the A.P. Motor Vehicle Tax Act, 1988 stipulates that every vehicle, in the nature of the vehicles owned by the petitioner, would attract motor vehicle tax, wherever such vehicles are used or kept in use in the State of Andhra Pradesh. This would mean that the owners of such vehicles would either pay the motor vehicle tax payable periodically or demonstrate to the authorities that the vehicle were not being used or kept for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh, and claim exemption from payment of such motor vehicle tax.

Rule 12A of the A.P. Motor Vehicle Taxation Rules, 1963 was introduced to provide a method of demonstrating such a fact. This Rule requires the owners of the vehicles who seek exemption from payment of motor vehicle tax to clear all pending dues of the motor vehicle tax payable till then and to intimate to the authorities, before the tax period commenced, that the said person who owns the vehicle, is not going to use or keep the vehicle for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh for a certain period of time for which he would not be claim motor vehicle tax.

This Court by order dated 01.09.2021 in W.P.No.13780 of 2020 and batch, had held that the method set out in Rule-12A of the A.P. Motor Vehicles Taxation Rules, 1963 is only one method of demonstrating that the owner of the vehicle has not used or kept his vehicle for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh for the period for which exemption is sought. This Court had also held that it was open to the owner of the said vehicle to demonstrate this fact by any other method that the owner of the vehicle chooses.

In these circumstances, this writ petition is disposed of leaving it open to the petitioner to file a representation before the 3rd respondent authority, within a period of 10 days from today, setting out the facts and material to demonstrate that the vehicles of the petitioner have not been used or kept for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh for the period 01.01.2021 to 09.09.2021. The 3rd respondent, upon receipt of such representation, within a period of three weeks of receipt of the said representation, shall take a decision as to whether the vehicles of the petitioner have been used or kept for use in the State of Andhra Pradesh, for the aforesaid period. Depending upon the decision taken by the 3rd respondent, the petitioner shall be liable to pay the motor vehicle tax along with other penalties and charges as may be determined by the 3rd respondent. Needless to say, it would always be open to the petitioner to exercise his remedies against the order passed by the 3rd respondent.

Pending disposal of the representation of the petitioner, the 3rd respondent shall permit the petitioner to ply his vehicles on payment of motor vehicle tax for the quarter ending 30.09.2021. Further, the petitioner shall not alienate or encumber the vehicles.

However, if no representation is filed by the petitioner within the ten days granted, for this purpose, the respondents can take steps for recovery of the dues.

As a sequel, pending miscellaneous petitions, if any, shall stand closed. There shall be no order as to costs.

________________________ R. RAGHUNANDAN RAO, J

9th September, 2021 Note: Issue C.C. in 2 days.

(B/o) Js HON’BLE SRI JUSTICE R. RAGHUNANDAN RAO