IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
AT CHANDIGARH.
CWP 6771/2009
Date of Decision: 19.8.2009.
General Manager,Haryana Roadways, Chandigarh
..........Petitioner
Versus
State of Punjab and others
..........Respondents
CORAM: HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE M.M.KUMAR
HON'BLE MR.JUSTICE JASWANT SINGH.
Present: Ms.Ritu Bahri,D.A.G.Haryana for the petitioner.
Mr.Piyush Kant Jain,Addl.AG Punjab for respondents.
1. Whether Reporters of local papers may be allowed to see the
judgement ?
2. To be referred to the Reporter or not ?
3. Whether the judgement should be reported in the Digest ?
M.M.KUMAR,J.
The matter regarding interim direction is listed today,
however, on the joint request of learned State counsel, the writ
petition is taken up for final hearing today.
State of Haryana has approached this Court with a prayer
for quashing various show cause notices (Annexure P/1 to P/13)
claiming that these show cause notices are in contravention of
CWP 6771/2009 2
section 3(f), Schedule”A” of the Punjab Motor Vehicle Taxation
Act,1924 and also order dated 27.5.2008 (Annexure P/14) passed
by the Joint State Transport Commissioner-cum-Appellate
Authority under the Punjab Motor Vehicles Taxation
(Amendment) Act,1993.
According to the averments made in the petition the
special road tax on the basis of presumptive seating capacity
against the actual seating capacity of the Tata vehicles being run
by the State of Haryana and passing through the State of Punjab
cannot be charged.
For resolving such like disputes Officers’ Committee
of both the States has to consider the issue and decide the same. In
that regard reliance may be placed on the judgments of Hon’ble the
Supreme Court in Oil and Natural Gas Commission and
Another v. Collector of Central Excise, 1995 Supp.(4) SCC 541
and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd. v. Chairman, Central
Board, Direct Taxes and another (2004) 6 SCC 431.
Both the learned State counsel have agreed to adopt the
aforesaid course and have prayed that the matter be relegated to the
Principal Secretaries, Department of Transport of the respective
States to assemble and resolve the issue amicably.
Accordingly, the writ petition is disposed of with a
direction to Principal Secretaries, Department of Transport of
CWP 6771/2009 3
State of Punjab and Haryana to meet and decide the issue raised in
the instant petition within a period of four weeks from the date of
receipt of a copy of this order. However, the interim order
restraining the State of Punjab from charging the impugned
amount shall continue till the decision of the Officers’ Committee.
The writ petition stands disposed of.
However, liberty is granted to the parties to approach
this Court, if such a necessity arises.
Copy of the order be given dasti on payment of usual
charges.
(M.M.Kumar)
Judge
19.8.2009 (Jaswant Singh)
joshi Judge