- (1.) This writ petition has been filed by the petitioners, who are engaged in the business of transporting of various petroleum products of the Indian Oil Corporation. On the basis of the tender, a contract was awarded in their favour by the Indian Oil Corporation. However, the tankers owned by petitioners are coming with different colours to identify a particular product. These vehicle or vehicles are carrying out Xtra Mile Super Diesel and Xtra Premium Petrol.
(2.) Mr. Rahul Agarwal, learned Counsel appearing for the petitioners has contended before us that whenever vehicles carry the products to the concerned Cantonment Board area, the Board is levying toll tax of Rs. 100 in the place and instead of Rs. 15. He has drawn our attention to the Gazette notification dated 2nd October, 2004, wherein a schedule has been given for toll tax on the vehicles laden with goods or passengers entering or passing through Babina Cantonment, district Jhansi. The said schedule of the tax is as follows: A toll tax on vehicles laden with goods or passengers entering or passing through Babina Cantonment: JUDGEMENT_696_ADJ5_20101.html Provided that no toll tax as aforesaid shall be levied on vehicles belonging to: (a) the Government of India or any State Government carrying goods certified to be the property of that Government; (b) the Cantonment Board carrying goods certified to be the property of Cantonment Board; (c) vehicle carrying solely funeral parties; (d) vehicles belonging to the persons and property exempted under Section 3 of the Indian Tolls (Army and Air Force) Act, 1901 (2 of 1901).
(3.) The contention of Mr. Agarwal is that since the truck is carrying petroleum products, the toll tax would have been charged at the rate of Rs. 15 per laden truck but the Cantonment Board is charging Rs. 100 from one laden truck as laden advertisement car vehicle. To that, he argued that under no circumstances the truck or tanker carrying fuel of the Indian Oil Corporation should be treated to be a laden advertisement Car vehicle for imposing Rs. 100 as toll tax. He said that no contract has been made for advertisement and no consideration has been made in connection thereto for payment of toll tax at the rate of Rs. 100 per vehicle. Mere identification of petroleum products cannot ipso facto give a cause for realisation of toll tax of Rs. 100 in the place and instead of Rs. 15. He has frankly confessed before us that no such case is available in the similar line, therefore, he wanted to get a meaning of the word "advertisement" or "advertising" from Encyclopaedia Britannica, Words and Phrases, West Publishing Co. and Advanced Law Lexicon. By and large, he wanted to say that the meaning of the word "advertising" is a form of paid public announcement intended to promote the sale of a commodity or service, to advance an idea or to bring about some other effect desired by the advertiser. The import of saying so, as we have understood, is that neither the transporter has been paid for public announcement nor intended to promote the sale of a commodity or service by using word Xtra Mile Super Diesel and Xtra Premium Petrol on the body of the truck as what type of products it is carrying.;