- (1.) THIS judgment will dispose of Civil Writ Petitions Nos. 1573 and 6099 of 1983 and 510, 4140 and 4505 of 1984 as it is a common case of the parties that in case it is held that the transactions in question are not sales then all the writ petitions are liable to be allowed.
(2.) FOR facility of reference, these cases can be classed in two categories, i. e. : (i)C. W. P. No. 1573 of 1983 : which is by the Food Corporation of India against the State of Haryana, calling in question the sales tax imposed on it under the Haryana General Sales Tax Act for the procurement of rice by it through State agency under the Haryana Rice Procurement Levy) Order, 1979 ; ii) C. W. P. No. 6099 of 1983 : which are also by the Food C. W. P. No. Corporation of India against 510 of 1984, the State of Punjab calling C. W. P. No. in question, inter alia, 4140 of 1984, the sales tax imposed under C. W. P. No. Section 4b of the Punjab 4505 of 1984. General Sales Tax Act for the procurement of rice by it through the agencies of the State under the Punjab Rice Procurement (Levy) Order.
(3.) SINCE, as already stated the fate of all these writ petitions depends upon the decision whether the transaction of supply of rice to the Food Corporation of India under the Levy Orders amounts to "sale" or not, it would be pertinent to notice in brief the facts as they emerge from C. W. P. No. 1573 of 1983 and are relevant, since that has come up before us on reference by the learned single Judge.;