ASHOK BHUSHAN,J. - (1.) Leave granted.
(2.) These appeals relate to entry tax levied on goods imported from different countries and brought into local area of a State. The legislative competence of the State Legislature to impose entry tax on the goods imported from outside the country entering into local area of the State is questioned. The State legislations are also questioned on the ground that the entry tax legislations do not contemplate levy of an entry tax on goods imported from outside the country. In this batch of appeals we are concerned only with entry tax legislations of States, namely, State of Orissa, State of Bihar, State of Kerala and State of Jharkhand, the relevant provisions of which statutes shall be noticed hereinafter.
(3.) A nine-Judge constitution Bench in Jindal Stainless v. State of Haryana and another, 2016 (11) Scale 1, had answered several questions pertaining to entry tax legislations of different States, which has largely settled various issues relating to entry tax. However, the issue pertaining to levibility of entry tax on the imported/foreign goods was left to be answered by regular Bench. Answering the reference following was stated in answer No.10: "The questions whether the entire State can be notified as a local area and whether entry tax can be levied on goods entering landmass of India from another country are left to be determined in appropriate proceedings." (emphasis by us) ;