BALIA, J. - (1.) THESE three appeals raises common questions, in similar facts and circumstances, about the chargeability of tax under Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1951 in respect of vehicles plying in Rajasthan as tourist coaches having authorisation certificates issued under the Motor Vehicles (All India Permit for Tourist Transport Operators) Rules, 1993 (hereinafter referred to as `the Rules of 1993) framed under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, hence are heard and decided together. Special Appeal (Writ) No. 219/2000:
(2.) THE petitioner-appellant is an approved tourist transport operator under the Rules of 1993. It holds permit in respect of vehicles in question from the State Transport Authority, Gujarat State, Ahmedabad. It holds an All India Tourist Permit under the Rules of 1993 which have been framed for giving effect to provisions of Sec. 88 (9) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (a Central enactment) That is for providing issue of authorisation certificate in the case of any tourist coach by a State Transport Authority of issuing State without requiring counter signatures of corresponding State Transport Authority or Regional Transport Authority of the State or States through which the tourist coach operates and charging of fees for such authorisation. THEse rules are primarily to minimise the procedural requirement of operating tourist inter-state transport. Any vehicle which is used or kept for use of public roads within the State of Rajasthan and is subject to tax under the Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1951 (hereinafter called, `the Act of 1951') which has been enacted by the State of Rajasthan. Under the said Act, by Notification dated April 29, 1995, amendment was made in Schedule `a' of the Act of 1951 providing rates of motor vehicle tax as well as Special Road Tax under Sec. 4-B by substituting the entry at Serial No. 6 (2) with the following:- " (2) Four wheeled contract carriage including Motor Cabs, Maxi Cabs, Omni Bus etc.- (a) For Car type Motor Cabs with seating capacity not exceeding 5 excluding driver Rs. 1000/- per seat per annum (b) Motor Vehicles other than Car type Motor Cabs- (i) With seating capacity not exceeding 12 excluding driver Rs. 3,000/- per seat per annum. (ii) With seating capacity exceeding 12 excluding driver but not exceeding 20 excluding driver and conductor- Ordinary vehicles Rs. 4,000/- per seat per annum. Other than ordinary vehicles Rs. 5,000/- per seat per annum. (iii) With seating capacity exceeding 20 excluding driver and conductor- Ordinary vehicles Rs. 5,000/- per seat per annum. Other than ordinary vehicles. Rs. 10,000/- per seat per annum Schedule `a' at the relevant time prescribed maximum rate of tax at which State could notify the rate of tax leviable under Section 4-B, popularly known as Special Road Tax, on various types of vehicles. Item at Serial No. 6 (2) concerns the rate of tax applicable to contract carriages. Following this amendment, the State Govt. issued Notification on 31. 03. 1997 notifying the rate at which tax was payable on the contract carriage under Sec. 4 (1) as well as 4-B which ply within the State on permits issued under Section 88 (9) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The said Notification is enclosed as Annx. 11 to the writ petition and reads as under:- GOVERNMENT OF RAJASTHAn TRANSPORT DEPARTMENt No. F6. (179)/pari/tax/hqrs/95/16 Jaipur, Dated : 31. 03. 97 NOTIFICATIOn In exercise of the powers conferred by clause (c) of sub sec. (1) of section 4 and Section 4-B of the Rajasthan Motor Vehicle Taxation Act 1951, (Rajasthan Act No. 11 of 1951) and in super session of all previous notifications issued in this behalf, the State Government hereby, with effect from 1. 4. 97 prescribes the rate of tax in the case of Transport Vehicles of other States and plying on permits issued under Section 88 (9) of the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 specified in Col. No. 2 of the table appended here, at the rates specified against each in Col. No. 3 and Col. No. 4 thereof:- S. No. Description of Transport Vehicle Rate of tax u/s. 4 (1) (C) Rate of tax u/s. 4-b 1 2 3 4 1. Transport Vehicles of other States plying on Tourist Permit (i) With seating capacity upto 5 excluding driver Rs. 15/- per seat Rs. 50/- per day (ii) With seating capacity more than 5 excluding driver and upto 12 excluding driver Rs. 25/- per seat Rs. 175/- per day (iii) With seating capacity more than 12 excluding driver and upto 40 excluding driver and conductor Rs. 100/- per seat Rs. 800/- per day (iv) With seating capacity more than 40 seats excluding driver and conductor. Rs. 120/- per seat, Rs. 900/- seat day. Note- 1. On payment of tax for two days as a lumpsum, at the rates specified above, no further tax have to be paid within that calendar month, irrespective of the number of trips undertaken during that month. 2. In addition to tax payable under this notification there shall be paid by the owner or person having possession or control of a motor vehicle, any tax or penalty as was payable under this Act for any period prior to the coming into the force of this notification issued under the provisions of the Chapter V of the Rajasthan Finance Act, 1997 at such rates as were applicable to such vehicles from time to time. By order of the Governor Sd/- (G. L. Gupta) Deputy Secretary to Government. " Following the aforesaid Notification prescribing rate of tax payable by the contract carriages playing on permits issued under Section 88 (9) of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988, the Transport Commissioner issued a circular that the recommendation made by the Surface Transport Ministry of the Union of India in its letter dated 30. 08. 1993 has not been accepted by the State of Rajasthan as yet, and therefore, the tax on the permits issued under the Rules of 1993 is leviable in terms of the Notification dated 31. 03. 1997, referred to above. The Notification dated 31. 03. 1997 coupled with circular dated 29. 1. 99 (Annx. 10) were challenged by the petitioner-appellant in Writ Petition No. 4543 of 1999. That petition was dismissed by learned Single Judge on 28. 01. 2000. Aggrieved with that order, the present appeal No. 219/2000 has been filed. Appeal No. 175/2000: The petitioner-appellant in this case is a recognised tourist operator under the Rules of 1993. The permit has been issued by State Transport Authority at Rajasthan, Jaipur, authorising the petitioner to operate in the State of Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and Delhi. The petition was filed before the Taxation Tribunal challenging the levy of tax under Section 4-B of the Rajasthan Motor Vehicle Taxation Act at rates specified under Notification dated 31. 03. 1997 and the circular issued by the Transport Commissioner dated 29th Jan. , 1999. The Original Application, filed before the Rajasthan Taxation Tribunal for Rajasthan, stood transferred to this Court on its abolition and was registered as Writ Petition No. 2037/99. The said writ petition was dismissed by the learned Single Judge of this Court on 11. 2. 2000 following the decision rendered in Punjab Travels Pvt. Ltd. vs. U. O. I. & Ors. (1), referred to above. Hence this appeal. Appeal No. 208/2000: This appeal is also by a transporter operator who is an approved tourist transport operator under the Rules of 1993 and holds authorisation certificate from the State Transport Authority, Gujarat State, Ahmedabad. The appellant holds an All India Permit. The petitioner-appellant in Appeal No. 175/2000 and this appeal is the same. However, as it relates to different authorisation certificate issued by different authority, a similar original application was filed in respect of authorisation issued by the STA, Ahmedabad challenging the levy of tax under the Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Taxation Act through notification at the rates provided under Notification dated 31. 03. 1997 on identical grounds before the Rajasthan Taxation Tribunal, which on its abolition stood transferred to this Court as Writ Petition No. 3434/99. The said writ was dismissed by a learned Single Judge on 3. 03. 2000 following the aforesaid decision rendered in Punjab Travels case (S. B. Civil Writ Petition No. 4543/99 (supra ).
(3.) THUS, all the three appeals challenge the levy of tax at the rates specified in the Rajasthan Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1951 on common grounds in respect of tax to be levied on tourist contract carriages operating under authorisation certificates issued under the Rules of 1993 within the State of Rajasthan. It has been contended by the learned counsel for the petitioners-appellants that in view of the decision taken in the meetings of the representatives of the Departments of Transport of all the States and Union Territories and with the officials of the Ministry of Surface Transport, Union of India, regarding National Permit Scheme for Tourist Coaches and Toll Tax, no tax in respect of tourist coaches exceeding the amount recommended in that meeting is leviable. In the said meeting, it has been agreed by the respective representatives of State Govts. that the permit holders under the Rules of 1993 shall be charged a composite fee at the rates; " (a) For Motor Cabs upto 6 seats - Rs. 300/- per Quarter Per State (Other than Home State), (b) For Maxi Cabs of 7 to 13 seats- Rs. 3000/- per Quarter Per State (Other than Home State) and (c) For Omni Buses of 14 to 35 seats - Rs. 12,000/- per Quarter Per State (Other than Home State), and this composite fee to be in lieu of all taxes. It has been urged that an instruction to that effect was also issued to all Transport Secretaries to the respective State Govts. and Union Territory Administrators by the Joint Secretary to the Govt. of India from the Department of Surface Transport on 30. 08. 1993 as reproduced hereinbelow:- No. RT-11053/1/92/mvl (VOL. II) 30 Aug. , 1993 To All the Transport Secretaries of the State/govts/union Territory Administrations. Subject : Scheme for national permits for tourist coaches. Sir, As you are aware, the Transport Development Council in its meeting held in January 1992 had recommended that an appropriate scheme may be worked out for operation of tourist cabs/coaches on the basis of an All India Permit. For this purpose, a Committee of State Transport Secretaries was formed and on the basis of recommendations/deliberations of this Committee, a scheme called the Motor Vehicles (All India Permit for Tourist Transport Operators) Rules 1993 has been finally notified vide Notification No. 541 dated 10th August 1993. A copy of the notification is enclosed for ready reference. 2. It may be mentioned that the State Governments had agreed that apart from the Home State Tax, the composite fee be charged from permit holders according to the following rates:- (a) For Motor Cabs upto 6 seats-Rs. 300/- per Qtr. Per State (Other than Home State) (b) For Maxi Cabs of 7-13 seats- Rs. 3000/- per Qtr. Per State (Other than Home State) (c) For Omni Buses of 14 to 35 seats-Rs. 12,000/- per Qtr. Per State (Other than Home State ). 3. I am writing to request you to take necessary action to incorporate these provisions relating to composite fee in the State motor vehicles taxation rules and also issue necessary instructions/guidelines to the State Authorities for grant of permits. It may also be clarified that the composite fee is in lieu of all taxes. Yours faithfully, (C. S. KHAIRWAL) JOINT SECETARY TO THE GOVT. OF INDIa Encl. As above. " In view of the aforesaid, it is contended that each of the petitioners-appellants obtained tourist permits under the Rules of 1993 on payment of composite fee as stated above representing that no taxes would be payable inasmuch as the composite fee was chargeable in lieu of all taxes, the State Govt. is not entitled to charge anything other than the composite fee referred to above, in lieu of all taxes. The provisions of the Notification dt. 31. 03. 1997 do not govern the cases of the petitioners-appella- nts in all the three appeals, that is to say, on principle of promissory estoppel the State Govt. having agreed to charge composite fee at the rates specified hereinabove, in lieu of all taxes, is now estopped from not giving effect to the said decision/assurance and charging taxes at the rates specified in the Notification dated 31. 03. 1997. ;