TMI Blog2006 (11) TMI 620X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing to levy of a tax on motor vehicles in the State of Andhra Pradesh.. Section 3 of the Act reads as under: 3(1) The Government may, by notification from time to time, direct that a tax shall be levied on every motor vehicle used or kept for use in a public place in the State. (2) The notification issued under sub-section (1) shall specify the class of motor vehicles on which, the rates for the periods at which, and the date from which, the tax shall be levied: Provided that the rates of tax shall not exceed the maximum specified in column (2) of the First Schedule in respect of the classes of motor vehicles fitted with pneumatic tyres specified in the corresponding entry in column (1) thereof; and one a half times the said maxim ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... not have been supplied. Mr. R. Sundaravardhan, learned senior counsel appearing on behalf of the respondents, on the other hand, would submit that in construction of a taxing statute, addition of any word is not impermissible and rule of strict construction applies only to the charging section of the Act and not to the machinery provisions. Drawing our attention to the fact that Maxi Cabs come within the purview of the contract carriage , the learned counsel would contend that the provisions must be construed having regard to the charging provision contained in Section 3 of the Act as also the rate of tax imposed on contract carriage . It was submitted that casus omissus can also be supplied in a case where there is a clear nece ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... : 4. The said Act is a taxing statute and a taxing statute must be interpreted as it reads, with no additions and no subtractions, on the ground of legislative intendment or otherwise. When the rate of tax is provided under a statute, construction thereof applying the principles of noscitur a sociis and ejusdem generis would not apply. The rate of tax was fixed at ₹ 1,000/-. That was a tax on the specified motor vehicle. The tax was not to be calculated on passenger basis. It may be that the provisions preceding thereto impose a tax on passenger. But, they were in relation to motor vehicles which are used for different purposes. A Maxi Cab although would come within the purview of contract carriage but it cannot carry mor ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e to adopt the former, because adopting the latter will make the rule ultra vires the Act. It is furthermore well-known that casus omissus cannot be supplied. In Ashok Lanka v. Rishi Dixit [(2005) 5 SCC 598], this Court opined: 66. The question as to whether it can be given effect to or not is, thus, required to be judged on its own without reference to the circular issued by the Commissioner of Excise. Casus omissus, it is well known, cannot be supplied by the court. (See P.T. Rajan v. T.P.M. Sahir) Gray in The Nature and Sources of the Law (2nd ed. 1921 pp 172- 73) observed thus: Interpretation is generally spoken of as if its chief function was to discover what the meaning of the Legislature really was. But when a Legis ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s and this concession therefore attracted the provisions of clause (iv). The Government could always accept any instalment even if paid late without having to worry about the period of limitation of one year from the date of demand, since clause (iv) of the first proviso gave them an option to wait till the last instalment was payable. The scheme of the instalments took the matter out of the main part of sub-section (7) and brought it within the proviso to clause (iv)\005 Clause (iv) of the proviso appended to Sub-section (7) of Section 46 of the Income Tax Act, 1922 came up for consideration therein which reads as under: Save in accordance with the provisions of subsection (1) of Section 42 or to the proviso to Section 45, no proce ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... be supplied by the Court except in the case of clear necessity and when reason for it is found in the four corners of the statute itself but at the same time a casus omissus should not be readily inferred and for that purpose all the parts of a statute or section must be construed together and every clause of a section should be construed with reference to the context and other clauses thereof so that the construction to be put on a particular provision makes a consistent enactment of the whole statute. This would be more so if literal construction of a particular clause leads to manifestly absurd or anomalous results which could not have been intended by the Legislature\005 Given this plain meaning to the provisions referred to herein ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
