TMI Blog2014 (1) TMI 672X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r the manufacture of the end product. A plant may be a continuous set of machineries or may be divided in segments. But those machineries, apparatus and the accessories all are necessary for manufacture of the end product. There is no dispute that the above referred equipments are indeed used for construction of the roads. Without the said equipments, no business engaged in construction of the roads can function. Even the Road rollers, which undoubtedly ply on the road is a construction equipment insofar as it has no use other than for pressing the soil, grit and tar on the road surface. Without a Road Roller, no road can be completed - Decided in favour of assessee. - Civil Writ Jurisdiction Case No.5801 of 2011 With Interlocutory Application No.2758 of 2011 With Interlocutory Application No.1591 of 2012 - - - Dated:- 9-1-2014 - R. M. Doshit, CJ And Birendra Prasad Verma, JJ. JUDGMENT Date : 9th January 2014. (Per: Honourable The Chief Justice) This Petition under Article 226 of the Constitution is filed by one Speedcrafts Limited, a Company incorporated under the Companies Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the Company ), to challenge the decision dated 24th Ma ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s . In support of his submission, Mr. Pathy has relied upon the judgments of the Hon ble Supreme Court in the matters of R.M.D. Chamarbaugwalla v. Union of India, (A.I.R. 1957 S.C. 628); of Commissioner of Income Tax, Madras v. Mir Mohammad Ali, (A.I.R. 1964 S.C. 1693); of South Asia Industries Private Ltd. v. S. Sarup Singh, (A.I.R. 1966 S.C. 346); of S. Narayanaswami v. G. Panneerselvam and others., (A.I.R. 1972 S.C. 2284); of Jaswant Singh v. State (Delhi Administration), (A.I.R. 1979 S.C. 190); of Lt. Col. Prithi Pal Singh Bedi v. Union of India and others, (A.I.R. 1982 S.C. 1413); of M/s. MSCO. Pvt. Ltd. v. Union of India and others, (A.I.R. 1985 S.C. 76); of Scientific Engineering House (P) Ltd. v. Commissioner of Income-tax, (A.I.R. 1986 S.C. 338); of Institute of Chartered Accountants of India v. M/s. Price Waterhouse and another, (A.I.R. 1998 S.C. 1974); of Jagatram Ahuja v. Commissioner of Gift-tax, (A.I.R. 2000 S.C. 3195); of The Corporation of Calcutta v. The Chairman of the Cossipore and Chitpore Municipality, (A.I.R. 1922 Privy Council 27); of the High Court of Mysore in the matters of Mangalore Ganesh Beedi Works v. Commissioner of Income-tax, (A.I.R. 1964 Mysore 235 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e would be at the rate of 12.5%. Section 14 of the Act of 2005 is the charging Section. It provides for the rate at which the tax is payable on various goods. Clause (b) thereof provides for the tax at the rate of 4% (5% with effect from 1st April 2012) on goods specified in Schedule-III. Clause (d) thereof provides, any other goods, not specified in the Schedules I, II, III and IV, at the rate of twelve and a-half per cent. It is not in dispute that the term Motor Vehicle is not specifically mentioned in any of the Schedules to the Act of 2005. A common entry Plant and machineries of all description is found at item No.91 of Schedule-III. It is also not in dispute that neither the term Plant and machinery nor the term Motor Vehicle is defined in the Act of 2005. Learned advocate Mr. D.V.Pathy has submitted that in absence of the specific definition in the Act of 2005, the principle of commercial/common parlance shall apply. He has submitted that in common parlance a motor vehicle would be a vehicle used to transport the goods or the passengers. Neither the above referred equipments produced by the Company are used for transportation of the passengers nor of the goods; ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... we rely upon the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 to hold that the construction equipments are the motor vehicles. If we look at the history of the Act of 2005, the Schedule to the Act of 2005 was amended under Government Notification dated 7th January 2006. By the said Notification a specific entry Road rollers and other road construction equipments was added at item no.93 in Schedule-III. The said Schedule was further amended under the Government Notification dated 1st April 2006. Since its modification under Notification dated 1st April 2006, entry 91 of Schedule-III reads, Plant and machineries of all description . The specific entry, Road Rollers and other road construction equipments is omitted. The submission is that by omission of the item Road Rollers and other road construction equipments , the intention of the State Government is to include such equipments under the generic item, Plants and Machineries of all description . According to Mr. Lalit Kishore, since the omission of specific item Road rollers and other road construction equipments , such equipments must be treated as they are. They being the motor vehicles, they should be treated as motor vehicles and charged ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and it is not necessarily confined to an apparatus which is used for mechanical operations or processes or is employed in mechanical or industrial business . The Hon ble Court has held, the capital assets acquired by the assessee, the technical knowhow in the form of drawings, designs, charts, plants, processing data and literature are plant . It is, therefore, imperative that in absence of specific definition or entry, the principle of common parlance shall apply. According to us, a plant in a common parlance will be a series of machineries, apparatus and the accessories used for the manufacture of the end product. A plant may be a continuous set of machineries or may be divided in segments. But those machineries, apparatus and the accessories all are necessary for manufacture of the end product. There is no dispute that the above referred equipments are indeed used for construction of the roads. Without the said equipments, no business engaged in construction of the roads can function. Even the Road rollers, which undoubtedly ply on the road is a construction equipment insofar as it has no use other than for pressing the soil, grit and tar on the road surface. Without a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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