Syndicate Bank vs Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh and Others

Yogeshwar Dayal, C.J. and Upendralal Waghray, J.—This writ petition has been filed on behalf of the Syndicate Bank, represented by its Deputy General Manager, Zonal Office, Hyderabad, questioning the order dated May 28, 1987, passed by Sri A. Balasubba Reddy, MBA, Commercial Tax Officer, Guntakal. It is useful to reproduce the impugned order :

"I am to inform you that according to the amendment in G.O. cited above and the powers vested in new rule 56-A of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957, I may require you to submit a return in form A-8.

I, therefore, request you to send the particulars as required in form A-8 as per records available with you for the year 1986-87 and continue to submit the return every month of the transactions with the dealers of Guntakal Circle.

This may kindly be treated as urgent and particulars may be furnished as early as possible since the finalisation of assessment of dealers are being taken up for 1986-87."

The bank has also challenged the vires of section 13-B of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 and rule 56-A framed thereunder as it appears that the source of the impugned order is section 13-B of the Act.

It will be noticed from the impugned order that, it requires the bank to submit returns in form A-8 in relation to all dealers of sales tax from the whole Circle of Guntakal. It appears to us that the officer concerned has not understood the scheme of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957, including section 13-B thereof.

After providing for levy and exemptions, section 12 of the Act dealt with registration of dealers. Section 13 of the Act contemplates that, every dealer who is liable to get himself registered u/s 12 shall submit returns relating to his turnover in the prescribed manner. Section 13-A then provides for penalty for failure to submit return by such dealer. Section 14 then provides for assessment of tax.

It is possible that a person may be a dealer within the meaning of the Act, and he is required to submit returns, and in order to assist assessing authority to arrive at a figure of turnover, power is conferred u/s 13-B of the Act. Section 13-B of the Act reads thus :

"Every scheduled bank including any branch of such bank or any banking institution in the State shall, at the request of the assessing authority concerned, submit in each month a return in the prescribed form, of all bills relating to goods discounted, cleared or negotiated and the payments and receipts relatable to the sale or purchase of goods transacted by or through it during the preceding month, in such manner and within such period as may be prescribed."

By section 13-B of the Act banks can be called upon to furnish certain information in relation to "a dealer" and in relation to a particular assessment. The Commercial Tax Officer has no blanket jurisdiction to pass an order of the type he has passed herein. If section 13-B of the Act in conjunction with rule 56-A of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957, is read and understood in this manner, it does not appear to be an unreasonable legislation violative of article 14 of the Constitution of India. The impugned order does not refer to any dealer whatsoever. In any case, how would the bank know who are all the dealers within the meaning of the Act.

We are thus constrained to quash the impugned order dated May 28, 1987, as being violative of section 13-B itself, and the same is accordingly quashed.

The writ petition is allowed with costs. Counsel''s fee Rs. 1,000.

Writ petition allowed.