Home Case Index All Cases VAT and Sales Tax VAT and Sales Tax + HC VAT and Sales Tax - 2007 (12) TMI HC This
Forgot password New User/ Regiser ⇒ Register to get Live Demo
2007 (12) TMI 428 - BOMBAY HIGH COURTConstitutional validity of section 25 of the Maharashtra Tax Laws (Levy, Amendment and Repeal) Act, 1989 challenged in so far as it pertains to amending entry 9 and entry 61 in Part II of Schedule C to the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 with retrospective effect from July 1, 1981. Held that:- The Legislature by the impugned legislation brought out clearly that lamination sheets including lamination sheets which are used for surface lamination of table tops, furniture, panels, partitions or for like purposes shall always be deemed to be covered under entry C-II-61 and what was covered under entry C-II-61 shall always be deemed to be excluded from entry C-II-9. Thus, by retrospective amendment what was implicit is made explicit and such a clarificatory amendment cannot be said to be arbitrary or discriminatory. The argument of the petitioners that the very fact that the Legislature chose to amend the entry C-II-9 with retrospective effect from July 1, 1981 shows that up to the date of amendment, the goods in question were taxable at six per cent under entry C-II-9 is also without any merit, because, by the retrospective amendment, none of the items set out in entry C-II-9 has been deleted. What is done by the retrospective amendment is to clarify that the items covered under entry C-II-61 were never covered under entry C-II-9. In other words, by retrospectively amending entry CII-9 it is clarified that the goods covered under entry C-II-61 were always intended to be excluded from entry C-II-9. Thus it is difficult to accept the arguments advanced on behalf of the petitioners regarding the constitutional validity of retrospective amendment to entries C-II-9 and C-II-61. W.P.fails.
|