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2021 (1) TMI 304 - HC - Indian LawsRecovery of additional tax - whether the petitioner is liable to pay the tax as demanded from him and as confirmed by the Appellate Authority and whether the denial of benefit of Rule 22-A of Uttar Pradesh Motor Vehicles Taxation Rules, 1998 was a valid exercise of power? - HELD THAT:- A plain reading of the Taxation Act and the Rules makes it clear that incidence of tax is use of the vehicle and the time for payment of the tax is specified under Section 9 of Motor Vehicles Taxation Act, 1997. Thus, for imposition of tax, it is essential to establish that the vehicle is "in use". Interestingly, under section 12 of the Taxation Act, specific provisions have been provided for the contingency where the operator and the owner of the motor vehicle does not intend to use his vehicle for a period of one month or more, in fact, a perusal of Section 12(2) provides for the procedure also wherein the owner or the operator is only to surrender the certificate of registration and token, if any, to the Taxation Officer and in fact, a bar is imposed from imposition of the tax or additional tax in respect of such vehicle for the period during which the vehicle remains withdrawn from use and the aforesaid documents remains surrendered with the Taxation Officer. Proviso to the said Section 12(2) confers a power on the Taxation Officer to impose the tax or the additional tax, in the event, the vehicle is found to be plying during the period when the documents as mentioned in Section 20(2) of the Act remains surrendered. Thus, a plain reading of Section 12 shows that a complete Code is prescribed .A conjoint reading of Section 12 (2) and Rule 22(4), relied upon by the counsel for the respondents make it clear that an additional action is to be performed by the owner if non-use of the vehicle is for more than three calendar months. It is clear that the date of manufacture of the vehicle is 1992 and the validity of the registration is 20 years and the fact that the fitness certificate of the vehicle has never been extended after 13.4.2009 and no fitness certificate has been granted thereafter, in terms of the mandate of the Motor Vehicle Act, the vehicle itself could not have been used as the same would have been in violation of the express mandate of Sections 55 and 56 of the Motor Vehicles Act. The stand of State is that although specific information was given by the petitioner for cancellation of registration, however, the State has taken a plea that as the petitioner failed to move an application after the expiry of three months for extension of surrender of registration in terms of Rule 22(4), the petitioner was liable to pay the demand on account of tax and additional tax from the period 01.12.2010 to 31.10.2012 and for a subsequent period from 01.11.2012 to 30.4.2013 - A perusal of the said order dated 11.2.2014 makes it clear that the applicability or the benefit of Rule 22-A to the facts of the case were never considered by the Taxation Officer. It is clear that once the operator/owner of the vehicle informs regarding surrender of registration certificate, a burden is cast upon the Taxation Officer to charge the tax and the additional tax only on being convinced that the vehicle is found plying as no tax can be levied in terms of Section 12(2) of the Motor Vehicles Taxation Act - Even otherwise admittedly the registration comes to an end after the expiry of 20 years, as admittedly, the vehicle was manufactured in the year 1992, the period of 20 years would expire in the year 2012 and thus no tax could have been imposed after the expiry of the said 20 years. As such the order of the Taxation Officer imposing tax for the period 01.11.2012 to 30.4.2013 amounting to ₹ 47,196/- is liable to be set aside to the extent of charging tax for the period 1.1.2013 to 30.4.2013. As regards the demand of tax amounting to ₹ 1,59,620/- for the period 01.12.2010 to 31.10.2012, the mater is remanded to the Taxation Officer to consider the grant of benefit under Rule 22-A of the Taxation Rules after making such enquiry as he may deem fit in terms of mandate of Rule 22-A. The writ petition is partly allowed.
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