The Court upheld the levy of entry tax on railway area goods, confirming the Municipal Corporation's jurisdiction.

1. The present Writ Petition under Art.226/227 of the Constitution of India has been filed seeking the following reliefs:
(i) This Court may be pleased to declare by appropriate writ or order that the Petitioners are not liable to pay entry tax under the Entry Tax Act as the area of railways where they are carrying their business does not fall within the local limits of Municipal Corporation of Bilaspur for the facts and reasons stated above.
(ii) This Court may be pleased to direct the Respondents not to act upon the notification Annexure P - 2 till the Writ Petition No. 4041 of 1999 pending before this Court for decision is disposed of as the notification on the basis of which the entry tax is sought to be levied is under challenge in the same petition.
(iii) This Court may be pleased to restrained the Respondents by appropriate writ or order from levying entry tax upon the Petitioners as being illegal, without the authority of law and without jurisdiction, thereby quashing Annexure P - 3 dated 12.11.1999 as void, illegal and opposed to law.

2. The Petitioners in the instant case are assailing Annexure P - 3, dated 12.11.1999, issued by Respondent No.3, the Commercial Tax Officer, Bilaspur Circle, Bilaspur informing that the members of the Petitioner's association who were businessman carrying on the business at the Mai Dhakka area of Bilaspur which is an area exclusively under the control of the South East Central Railways (erstwhile South Eastern Railway) will be liable to pay entry tax on all those goods and articles brought at the Mai Dhakka area with effect from 23.7.1999.

3. According to the Petitioners since the area where the members of the Petitioner's Association were carrying on their business was outside the limits of the Corporation and the notification and the order on the basis of which the entry tax is being sought to be levied is also sub judice in a writ petition i.e., Writ Petition No. 4041 of 1999 and till the issue is decided, the subsequent issuance of the order making the entry tax leviable is bad in law.

4. Learned Counsel for the Petitioners submit that the undisputed fact in the present case is that the members of the Petitioner's Association were carrying on their business at the Mai Dhakka area near Budhwari Bajar which was an area exclusively belonging to the Railways and was outside the limits of the Municipal Corporation, Bilaspur and the said area was exempted from the taxes which were otherwise leviable in respect of local limits and local area of the Municipal Corporation. Subsequently, the said Mai Dhakka area was also brought within the precinct of the Municipal Corporation, Bilaspur and entry tax and other related taxes were made leviable in the area which though belonging to the Railway department but came within the boundaries of Municipal Corporation, Bilaspur. However, vide Annexure P - 3, dated 12.11.1999, the authorities have made entry tax leviable at the Mai Dhakka area effective from 23.7.1999 and it is this implication of tax liability with effect from 23.7.1999 which is under challenge in the present case.

5. Learned Counsel for the Petitioners confined his challenge in the present Writ Petition to the enforceability of the provisions with effect from 23.7.1999 to 1.11.2000. He refers to the definition of "Local Area" as defined in S.2(d) and the definition of "Local authority" as defined in S.2(e) of the Chhattisgarh Sthaniya Kshetra Me Mai Ke Pravesh Par Kar Adhiniyam, 1976 (hereinafter referred to as 'the Act of 1976'). For ready reference S.2(d) and (e) of the Act