Gajenoragadkar, J. - (1.) The appellant, Firm Ghulam Hussain Haji Yakoob and Sons, moved the Rajasthan High Court by a petition under Art. 226 of the Constitution for the issue of a writ in the nature of prohibition or other writ or appropriate order, declaring that it was not liable to pay the customs duty sought to be levied on it by the Collector of Sirohi by his order of the 9th February, 1956. It appears that one Mohammad Sagir had taken a contract for cutting forest of Harani Amrapura from the Thakur of Nibaj on the 12th July, 1946. The duration of this contract was five years and the purpose of the contract was to enable the contractor to prepare charcoal. This contract was subsequently transferred to the appellant by the said Sagir on the 13th September, 1948. In due course, the contract was extended by the Thakur of Nibaj by two years and an endorsement was made on it to that effect on the 15th April, 1950. Under this contract the appellant prepared charcoal and exported it out of the State of Sirohi. The Assistant Commissioner, Customs and Excise, Sirohi, took the view that the appellant was liable to pay customs duty @ As. -/8/- per maund on the quantity of charcoal exported by it. The Asstt. Commissioner found that the charcoal thus exported by the appellant was 27,000 mds. Accordingly, the said Asstt. Commissioner made a report to the Commissioner on the 11th February, 1954. The matter was then dealt with by the Dy. Commissioner, Customs and Excise, and he passed an order that the appellant had exported charcoal without payment of duty. This order was made on the 17th December, 1954. According to the finding made by the Dy. Commissioner, the charcoal exported by the appellant after the 30th November, 1948, amounted to 48,650 maunds. On this basis, the appellant was asked to pay Rs. 24,325/- on account of the duty on export of charcoal @ As. -/8/- a maund. The appellant challenged the correctness of this order by preferring an appeal to the Government, but its appeal was rejected on the 24th May, 1956. The appellant came to know about this order on the 5th April, 1957, when it was asked by the Tehsildar to deposit the duty assessed on it along with interest. Since the appellant did not deposit the amount, the Customs authorities had, in the meanwhile, made a requisition to the Collector of Sirohi for recovery of the said amount, and the Collector had issued a notice on the appellant under the Public Demands Recovery Act on the 9th February, 1956. It is the validity of this notice that the appellant challenged by its present writ petition. The appellant's case was that the order purported to have been passed by the State Council of Sirohi by which the customs duty @ As. -/8/ was levied on charcoal was invalid and ultra vires and so, it was not competent to the Customs authorities to levy any duty on the charcoal exported by the appellant and it was not competent to the Collector to issue a demand notice for the recovery of the said duty under the Public Demands Recovery Act.
(2.) On the other hand, the respondent, the State of Rajasthan, disputed the correctness of the appellant's allegation that the duty had been illegally levied. It was urged by the respondent that the said duty had been levied validly by the resolution passed by the State Council which had been approved by Her Highness Shri Rajmata Saheba. Since the said resolution had been duly passed by a competent authority the levy of the duty imposed on the appellant was valid and the Collector was justified in issuing the notice of demand under the Public Demands Recovery Act.
(3.) The High Court has upheld the plea made by the respondent with the result that the writ petition filed by the appellant has been dismissed with costs. The appellant then applied for and obtained a certificate from the High Court and it is with the said certificate that it has come to this Court by its present appeal.;