S.C.Manchanda, J. - (1.) These are two writ petitions under Article 226 of the Constitution directed against the orders of the Sales Tax Officer, Kanpur, assessing the dissolved firm.
(2.) The relevant assessment years are 1953-54 and 1954-55. The firm was dissolved on the 23rd July, 1957. It is contended by Mr. Jagdish Swarup for the petitioner that no assessment can be made on a firm which has been dissolved before the coming into force of the U.P. Sales Tax (Second Amendment) Act, 1957. It is further contended that the U. P. Sales Tax (Amendment) Act, XV of 1961, is ultra vires to the extent that it makes it possible to assess a firm dissolved prior to the 30th November, 1957. The argument is that prior to 1957 a Division Bench of this Court in Jagat Behari Tandon v. State 1957 A.L.J. 77 had held that there was no provision in the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948, for any assessment to be made on a dissolved firm. To plug this hole the Legislature introduced the (Second Amendment) Act, XXXII of 1957. By virtue of Section 3 of the said Act a new Section 3-C was inserted in the principal Act (Act XV of 1948). The relevant portion of Section 3-C is as follows :- 3-C. Liability to tax of a dissolved firm, etc.-Where the dealer is a firm...and such firm...has discontinued business during the course of an assesement year (a) tax payable under this Act by such firm...for the period upto the date of such discontinuance may be assessed and determined as if no such discontinuance had taken place.
(3.) The Act XXXII of 1957 was published in the Gazette dated the 30th November, 1957. Section 1 thereof reads as follows : 1. (2) It shall come into force at once : Provided that the amendments to the U. P. Sales Tax Act, 1948 (hereinafter called the Principal Act) made by Section 3 shall also apply in relation to assessments for any year before the commencement of this Act whether such assessments have or had at any stage been completed or not.;