C.S.P. Singh, J. - (1.) The petitioner is engaged in the business of transport of goods and owns a number of transport vehicles. These vehicles are registered in different States. The petitioner transports goods inter-State, and while doing so, the vehicles owned by it pass through the State of U.P. It is averred by the petitioner that while transporting these goods, the petitioner plies his vehicles only on National Highways. The petitioner, has to obtain temporary permits from the State of U.P. for passing through the area comprised in the State of U.P. These temporary permits are, however, issued for the sake of convenience by the authorities where the vehicles are registered. Before issuing temporary, permits, the registering Stale, makes, a charge of taxes at the rates fixed by the State of U. P. under two heads viz. U. P. Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1935 and the U. P. Motor Gadi (Mal-kar) Adhiniyam, 1964. The tax charges under the Adhiniyam, 1964, is a lump sum amount as envisaged by Section 9 of that Act, while the tax collected under the Taxation Act depends on the period during which the vehicles ply in U. P. and is charged under Sec. 5-A of that Act. The petitioner has, by this petition, challenged the levy and charge of both the taxes.
(2.) We propose to deal with the challenge made to taxes collected under the U. P. Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1935 first.
(3.) Counsel for the petitioner hast contended (1) that the U. P. Legislature has no competence to enact a law which empowers it to levy taxes in respect of the vehicles plying on national highways, in as much as a law relating to national highways can be enacted only by the Parliament; (2) that in as much as the vehicles do not ply in U P., neither Section 4, nor Sec. 5-A, which are the relevant charging sections apply, and as such the imposition in question is wholly unjustified; (3) that; in as much as the route on which the petitioner's vehicles ply is a national highway, and the State cannot classify this route as required by Rule 5 of the Motor Vehicles Taxation Rules, 1935, the tax sought to be collected is without the authority of the law; (4) that in as much as Sec. 5-A which is the relevant charging section did not receive the assent of the President of India, the tax in question offends Art. 301 and Art. 304 of the Constitution of India; (5) that in any event, the tax in question imposes an unreasonable restriction on the petitioner's right to carry on the business of transporting goods and as such violative of Art. 19(f) of the Constitution; (6) that the rate of tax is excessive and confiscatory and as such offends Art. 31 of the Constitution; (7) that the levy in question is also violative of Art. 14 of the Constitution, in as much as it makes a hostile discrimination between the operation who ply exclusively in U. P. and the petitioner. We will deal with each of these arguments in seriatim.;