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PETITIONER: CALCUTTA IRON MERCHANTS ASSOCIATION AND ANOTHER

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: COMMISSIONER OF COMMERCIAL TAXES AND ANOTHER

DATE OF JUDGMENT:       23/02/1996

BENCH: JEEVAN REDDY, B.P. (J) BENCH: JEEVAN REDDY, B.P. (J) PARIPOORNAN, K.S.(J)

CITATION:  JT 1996 (5)   563        1996 SCALE  (2)726

ACT:

HEADNOTE:

JUDGMENT:                          O R D E R      Leave granted.      Heard counsel for the parties.      Section 4B of the Bengal Finance (Sales lax) Act, 1941 says:      "No person shall transport from any      railway stations  steamer  station,      airport, post  office, or any other      place whether  of similar nature or      otherwise, notified  in this behalf      by  the   State   Government,   any      consignment of  any notified  goods      exceeding   such   quantities   and      except  in   accordance  with  such      conditions as  may  be  prescribed.      Such conditions  shall be made with      a view to ensuring that there is no      evasion of tax by this Act." Sub-section (2)  empowers the  State Government to prescribe the conditions  for regulating  transport of  notified goods from any  places other than those referred to in sub-section (1) with  a view to ensuring that there is no evasion of tax imposed by this Act.      Pursuant to  the above provisions, rules have been made by the State Government. Rule 89A and in particular sub-rule (2) thereof is relevant for our purpose It reads:      "(2)  Where   such  contingent   is      despatched from  any  place  within      West Bengal  and the  value whereof      exceeds    rupees    twenty    five      thousand--      (a) any  person  transporting  such      consignment shall  carry with him a      consignment note  or delivery notes      sale bill  or cash  memo or similar      document and  a written declaration

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    in duplicate  duly  signed  by  the      consignor or  his authorized  agent      in  the   form  mentioned   in  the      Schedule appended  to this sub-rule      in respect of such consignments and      shall, on  demand  by  the  officer      referred to  in the proviso to sub-      rule (1)  of Rule  70A, produce the      said documents  and declaration and      the   said    officers   on   being      satisfied about  the correctness of      the documents  and the declaration,      shall only  allow the  movement  of      such  quantity  of  notified  goods      mentioned in  that declaration  and      conforming to  the description give      therein  and   to  other  documents      produced He  shall retain  one copy      of the  declaration and  return the      second  copy   on  which  he  shall      endorse  the   date  on  which  the      consignment  is   transported   and      shall  sign,  seal  and  date  such      endorsement;      (b) If  the declaration referred to      in clause  (a) in  respect  of  any      consignment   has    already   been      submitted to an officer referred to      in the proviso sub-rule (1) of rule      70A any  person  transporting  such      consignment  shall,  on  demand  by      such  officer   at  any  subsequent      place,  produce  the  countersigned      and sealed  copy of  the  aforesaid      declaration.               S C H E D U L E               - - - - - - - -                Declaration                -----------                    Declaration Na.......                    Date.................           I/We    declare    that    the      following consignment  of  notified      goods is  despatched from  a  place      within West Bengal:-      1.  Name   and   address   of   the      consignor      2. (a)  Name  and  address  of  the      consignee.           (b)  Registration  Certificate                No. of  the consignee (if                registered  or  certified                under any  of  the  Sales                Tax Acts).      3. Place of despatch.      4. Destination.      5. Description of consignment      6. Quantity      7. Weight      8. Value      9. Consignor’s Bill/Cash Memo/other           document  (specify)   No.  and           date      10. Consignment  or  Delivery  Note           No. and date.

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         I/We declare that I/We hold/do      not        hold        Registration      Certificate/Certificate  No........      under  the  Bengal  Finance  (Sales      Tax) Act,  1941/West  Bengal  Sales      TAX. Act, 1954.           I/We       have/have       not      manufactured  the   goods  in  West      Bengal/not  transported  the  goods      from outside West Bengal.           The above  statements are true      to the best of my/our Knowledge and      belief.                  status of the declarant                 Signature       N.B.  (1) This  declaration should                bear a  consecutive issue                number of  the office  of                the consignor giving  the                declaration  and  a  true                copy of  the same  should                be retained  by him.           (2) Strike out words or phrase                not  applicable.      [Inserted by  Notification  No.1863      F.T    dated    25.4.1985    w.e.f.      1.5.1985]"      According to  clause (a)  of  sub-rule  (2),  a  person transporting goods  shall  carry  with  him  three  sets  of documents, viz.,(i) consignment note or delivery note (ii) sale bill or cash memo or similar document and (iii) a  written declaration in duplicate duly signed by the consignor or  his authorized agent in the form  mentioned in the Schedule to the sub-rule in respect of such consignment. These  documents   are  required  to  be  produced  by  such transporter  on  demand  by  any  appropriate  officer.  The declaration form  contained in  the sub-rule  says that  the declaration has  to  be  signed  by  the  consignor  or  his authorized   agent   and   shall   contain   the   specified particulars. It  is this  declaration which along with other prescribed documents,  a person  transporting such goods has to produce as and when demanded by the appropriate officer.      We are concerned herein with persons who are dealers in iron and  steel. Their  case is  this:  Iron  and  steel  is taxable at  the first  point of  sale.  Iron  and  steel  is manufactured by  major manufacturing  units. When  they sell the same,  they pay  tax thereon.  The appellants  are  only purchasers and they transport goods purchased by them in the course of  their business.  They  complain  that  under  the rules,   an    obligation   is    placed   only   upon   the purchasers/transporters  to   be  in   possession   of   the aforementioned three  sets of  documents and to produce them whenever demanded  by the  appropriate officer  but no  such obligation   is    placed   upon   the   sellers/consignors. Consequently, the  sellers are  not issuing the declarations as  contemplated   by  Rule   89A(2).  The  appellants  ares therefore, not in a position to produce the declaration when demanded by the authorities, on which account they are being to harassment and financial loss.      Sri A.Subba  Rao, learned  counsel for  the appellants, reiterates the  grievance that the rule which does not place an obligation  upon the  soller/consignor of  the  goods  to issue the  aforesaid written  declaration in  the prescribed form but  places an  obligation upon the consignee/purchaser to carry it, is unreasonable and oppressive. We do not think

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this grievance  is well-founded. The Rule squarely places an obligation upon the consignor to issue a written declaration in duplicate in the prescribed forms signed by him or by his authorized agent.  The rule  places a  statutory  obligation upon    the    consignor/vendor    to    issue    and    the consignee/purchasers to carry the declaration Form. All this is meant  to check  and prevent  evasion of  Sale Tax and no dealer can make any legitimate grievance against it.      We, therefore,  dispose of  this appeal  with the above directions/clarifications.      We may  also clarify  that the  direction made  by  the Tribunal in  Paragraph 16 of its judgment to the effect "We, however,  like   to  direct  that  where  a  transporter  or consignee fails to produce a written declaration as required by rule  89A(2), he  should be  allowed to establish that he had demanded  such a  declaration from the selling dealer or the consignor,  but the  latter did  not issue or refused to issue the  same. If  the appropriate  authority is satisfied that  the   transporter  or  consignee  had,  in  fact,  not negligent in the matter, and the consignor or selling dealer had not  issued or refused to issue the declaration, inspite of request for the same, there should be neither any seizure of Iron  and Steel  declared goods nor imposition of penalty on the  sole  ground  that  the  declaration  has  not  been produced in  terms of rule 89A(2)" - is not only impractical but is  also likely to lead to several complications. In any event, in  the light  of the  clarification made  by us with respect to the meaning and purport of rule 89A(2), the above direction becomes unnecessary and is accordingly deleted.      The appeal is disposed of accordingly. No costs.