- (1.) THESE are appeals by the State against the acquittal of the accused in C. C. Nos. 660 and 661 of 1951 on the file of the Second Class Magistrate of Kanayannore. The charge against the accused in both the cases was that he violated Sections 4 (1) (d) and 8, Travancore-Cochin Vehicles Taxation Act, 14 of 1950, by putting on the road T. C. C. 1634 (C. C. No. 660 of 1951) and T. C. No. 1635 (C. C. No. 661 of 1951) on 23. 7. 51.
(2.) THE user of the vehicles on the date in question was not disputed and the only defence in the two cases, as summarised by the lower Court, was: That the bus in question has been granted permit to be treated as a reserve bus, that as per Government Notification T 4-7879/49/pwc dated 20. 1. 1951 issued in the exercise of powers conferred on the Government under Section 11, Travancore Cochin Vehicles Taxation Act, 14 of 1950, Government have exempted reserve buses from payment of vehicles tax, that the exemption once granted is absolute and unconditional and obtains as long as the permit remains in vogue i. e. the exemption obtains till and so long as the permit has not expired or has not been cancelled, that this bus which had been granted permit as a reserve bus, which permit was current on date of checking and which in fact expires only on 15. 6. 1954, had not to pay tax therefor
(3.) WE are not prepared1 to accept the contention and are clearly of the opinion that the lower Court was wrong in doing so. Nor are we prepared to accept the contention of the State that if the tax was in arrears in respect of any one of his sixteen route buses-it was admitted that he had not paid the tax in respect of some of them-the accused was precluded from using a reserve bus and that he would necessarily incur a penalty by such a user.;