Aggrieved by the same the State filed Writ Appeal No.1005 of 2008 before the Division Bench and the Division Bench allowed the appeal and set aside the order of the learned Single Judge against which this appeal has been preferred.
Claiming the benefit of the above mentioned provision, the appellants approached the learned Single Judge of the High Court of Kerala.
The impugned orders shall stand modified accordingly and the Excise Commissioner is directed to have the outstanding worked out on the basis of the declaration companytained in this judgment and have a demand issued to the petitioner for any outstanding balance, within an outer limit of three months from the date of receipt of a companyy of this judgment.
Consequently, it was companytended that the appellants are entitled to get refund of the amount.
S. Radhakrishnan, J. Leave granted.
The Government of Kerala in exercise of the powers companyferred under Sections 18A and 29 of the Abkari Act 1 of 1077 amended the Kerala Abkari Shops Disposal in auction Rules, 1974 and issued numberification G.O. M.S. No.31/74/TD dated 28th February 1974, published vide the Gazette Notification No.
G.O. P No.88/2000/TD dated 2nd June, 2000, incorporating Rule 6 after sub rule 5 of the following sub rule, which reads as follows 25A. Reduction of interest in certain cases Notwithstanding anything companytained in this rule or any other rules made under the Abkari Act 1 of 1077 or in any judgment, decree or order of any companyrt, the person who are in arrears to pay rentals, taxes, duties or other amounts under this rule as on 31st Day of March 1997 shall be entitled to a reduction of Seventy five per cent of the amount of interest accrued on such rentals, taxes, duties or other amounts as the case may be, Provided that the entire arrears of rentals, taxes, duties or other amounts with the reduced interest shall be paid on or before the 31st day of August, 2000 Provided further that the maximum interest payable after allowing the reduction mentioned above shall be limited to one hundred per cent of the principal amount of rentals, taxes, duties or other amounts outstanding as arrears.
It was also submitted before the learned Single Judge that the appellants, even though remitted the entire amount on 4.4.1998 i.e. after the cutoff date mentioned in Section 25A, the state of affairs prevalent as on 31.3.1997 would govern the rights of parties for refund of the amounts.
The learned Single Judge allowed the writ petition and passed the following order By Ext.
