WEST BENGAL TAXATION LAWS (AMENDMENT) ACT, 1998

Act No. 04 of 1998

1st July, 1998

An Act to amend the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (2 of 1899), in its application to West Bengal, the Bengal Amusements Tax Act, 1922, the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1944, the West Bengal Primary Education Act, 1973, the West Bengal Rural Employment and Production Act, 1976, the West Bengal Entertainment-cum-Amusement Tax Act, 1982, and the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994. Whereas it is expedient to amend the Indian Stamp Act, 1899, in its application to West Bengal, the Bengal Amusements Tax Act, 1922 (Ben. Act V of 1922), the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1944 (Ben. Act IV of 1944), the West Bengal Primary Education Act, 1973 (West Ben. Act XLIII of 1973), the West Bengal Rural Employment and Production Act, 1976 (West Ben. Act XIV of 1976), the West Bengal Entertainment-cum-Amusement Tax Act, 1982 (West Ben. Act VI of 1982), and the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994

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S.1 Short title and commencement

(1) This Act may be called the West Bengal Taxation Laws (Amendment) Act, 1998.

(2) Except as otherwise provided, it shall come into force on such date, or shall be deemed to have come into force on such date not earlier than the first day of May, 1995, as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint, and different dates may be appointed for different provisions of this Act.

S.2 Application and amendment of Act 2 of 1899

(1) The Indian Stamp Act, 1899 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act) shall, in its application to West Bengal, be amended for the purpose and in the manner hereinafter provided.

(2) In Schedule IA to the principal Act,-

• (a) against article 31 in the first column, for the entry relating thereto in the second column, the entry "The same duty as a Conveyance (No. 23) on the market value of the property of the greatest value." shall be substituted;
• (b) for article 33 in the first column and the entry relating thereto in the second column, the following article in the first column and entries relating thereto in the second column shall be substituted:-

  "33. Gift-Instrument of, not being a Settlement (No. 58) or Will or Transfer (No. 62)-

  • (i) when made to a member of a family; one-half of one per centum of the market value of the property which is the subject-matter of the Gift.
  • (ii) when made to any other person.
    

S.3 Amendment of Ben. Act V of 1922

In the Bengal Amusements Tax Act, 1922,-

• (1) in section 3, to sub-section (3b), the following proviso shall be added:-

  "Provided that subject to such conditions and restrictions as may be prescribed, the provisions of this sub-section shall not apply to a proprietor in relation to a cinematograph exhibition in respect of admissions without payment to a seat or other accommodation therein, where such proprietor is a club, society or any other person and holds such exhibition occasionally.";

• (2) in section 7, in sub-section (1), after the words "in the case of a cinematograph exhibition,", the words, figures, letter and brackets "other than a cinematograph exhibition referred to in the proviso to sub-section (3b) of section 3," shall be inserted;
• (3) in section 8A, in sub-section (3),-
  • (a) in clause (c), after the words "in this sub-section,", the word "or" shall be added;
  • (b) after clause (c), the follo
    

S.4 Amendment of Ben. Act IV of 1944

In the Bengal Agricultural Income-tax Act, 1944,-

• (1) in section 50, after the words "against the agricultural income-tax", the words ", interest or penalty," shall be inserted and shall be deemed to have been inserted with effect from the 1st day of April, 1991;
• (2) in section 57, in sub-section (1), the words", subject to the condition of previous publication," shall be omitted.

S.5 Amendment of West Ben. Act XLIII of 1973

In the West Bengal Primary Education Act, 1973, in section 78B, after clause (h1), the following clause shall be inserted:-

• "(hm) where an owner of a tea estate, who is liable to pay interest under clause (hc), makes-
  • (i) full payment of cess assessed under clause (e) in respect of the years commencing on the fourteenth day of April, 1984 and ending on the thirty-first day of March, 1995 or part thereof, as the case may be, and
  • (ii) full payment of interest payable in accordance with the direction of the Supreme Court of India contained in its judgement delivered on the twenty-fifth day of November, 1994 in the case of Goodricke Group Limited and Others versus State of West Bengal and Others and also in the matter of similar other cases,
  within the 31st day of March, 1999, the interest payable under clause (hc) for the period as aforesaid by such owner, accrued up to the thirty-first day of March, 1999 or the date of
  

S.6 Amendment of West Ben. Act XIV of 1976

In the West Bengal Rural Employment and Production Act, 1976, in section 4, in sub-section (3), after clause (g12), the following clause shall be inserted:-

• (g13) where an owner of a tea estate, who is liable to pay interest under clause (g3), makes-
  • (i) full payment of cess assessed under clause (d) in respect of the years commencing on the first day of April, 1981 and ending on the thirty-first day of March, 1995 or part thereof, as the case may be, and
  • (ii) full payment of interest payable in accordance with the direction of the Supreme Court of India contained in its judgement delivered on the twenty-fifth day of November, 1994 in the case of Goodricke Group Limited and Others versus State of West Bengal and Others and also in the matter of similar other cases, within the 31st day of March, 1999, the interest payable under clause (g3) for the period as aforesaid by such owner, accrued up to the thirty-first day of March, 1999 or the da
    

S.7 Amendment of West Ben. Act VI of 1982

In the West Bengal Entertainment-cum-Amusement Tax Act, 1982,-

• (1) in section 4A,-
  • (a) sub-section (4) shall be omitted;
  • (b) the proviso to sub-section (4a) shall be omitted;
  • (c) in sub-section (5), the words, figure and brackets or transmit for exhibition of performance referred to in sub-section (4) during any week shall be omitted;
• (2) in section 5, sub-section (4) shall be omitted.

S.8 Amendment of West Ben. Act XLIX of 1994

In the West Bengal Sales Tax Act, 1994-

• (1) in section 2, for clause (35), the following clause shall be substituted:-

  (35) tax means tax payable under the Act, and includes surcharge payable under section 16, additional surcharge payable under section 16A and additional sales tax payable under section 18A;;

• (2) in section 17,-
  • (a) in sub-section (2A), for the words , the tax payable by a dealer, the words, figures, letters and brackets , and subject to the provisions of sub-clause (viiia) of clause (a) of sub-section (3), the tax payable by a dealer shall be substituted;
  • (b) in sub-section (3), in clause (a), after sub-clause (viii), the following sub-clause shall be inserted:-

    (viiia) sales of goods specified in Schedule VIIIA, on a prior sale whereof in West Bengal by a registered dealer due tax under sub-section (2A) of this section has been paid:

    Provided that the prov