- (1.) THE petitioner is a company of cement dealers, having its registered office at Bombay. For four quarters ending on July 31, 1956, the respondent, Commercial tax Officer assessed the petitioner company to sales-tax, amounting to Rs, 7,25,386/12/6, and after giving credit for tax already paid, called upon the petitioner Company to pay the balance, namely, a sum of Rs. 7,15,042/12/6. The petitioner company paid the aforesaid sum under protest, on March 23, 1957, and then moved against the order of assessment, under Article 226 of the constitution, and obtained a Rule, which was numbered as Matter No. 51 of 1957.
(2.) THE aforesaid Rule came up for hearing before P. B. Mukharji, J. and by an order, dated April 25, 1958, his lordship set aside the assessment with the following observation: "this assessment is set aside on the ground that the recent judgment of the Supreme Court in M. P. V. Sundararamier and Co. v. The State of Andhra and Anr. , (as yet unreported) [since reported in (1958) S. C. A. 492-Ed. ] has decided that the Sales Tax Laws Validation Act, 1956 is intra vires. But this Act so far as applicable to the case before me relates merely to a short period from 1. 8,55 to 6. 9. 58 the Validation Act being good only from 1. 4. 51 to 6-9. 55. The present assessment has not separated this period and therefore the whole of the assessment is set aside for reassessment on the basis of the Supreme Court Judgment.
(3.) ON the further question whether for the period excluding this one month from 1. 8. 55 to 6. 9. 55 the sale in this case is an inter-State sale and as such whether it attracts (a) Sales Outside West Bengal (b) Sales to Registered dealers (c) Other exemptions: (i) under section 5 (2) (a) (iii) (ii) under section 5 (2) (a) (iv) (iii) Direct sale from works according to the petitioner company the taxable turnover, after exemptions aforementioned, came up to rs. 2,03. 429/- only. (a) Sale to registered dealers (b) Sale outside West Bengal (c) Under section 5 (2) (a) (iv)the State Tax or not will be open to argument both on facts and law before the assessing officer at the time of the reassessment and the parties will have right of access to this court as they think fit under art. 226 of the Constitution. They will not be prejudiced in any manner by the assessment being set aside only on the ground mentioned above. ";