State Of M.P. And Anr vs Smt. Abha Sethi Etc

BENCH: S.P. BHARUCHA & B.N. KIRPAL & S. RAJENDRA BABU & S.S.M QUADRI & M.B. SHAH

JUDGMENT:

JUDGMENT

1999(2) SCR 930

The Order of the Court is as follows

1. The State of Madhya Pradesh is in appeal against the orders of the Madhya Pradesh High Court that followed its earlier judgment in Harrish Wilson v. State of M.P (WP No. 567 of 1981) and held that video games located in video parlours were not liable to entertainment tax under the M.P. Entertainments Duty and Advertisements Tax Act, 1936, on the ground that what entertains a person in the video parlour is his own performance and not the exhibition, performance, amusement, game or any sport offered by the proprietor of the video parlour. The payment that was made was only to provide the payer with tools for deriving pleasure from his own performance and that payment did not amount to a payment for admission to an entertainment

2. The judgment in the case of Harrish Wilson (WP No. 567 of 1981) was noticed by this Court in the case of Geeta Enterprises v. State of U.P. ( 1983 (4) SCC 202 : 1983 SCC(Tax) 307 : 1983 (3) SCR 812) and it was held that important aspects had been completely overlooked. The pivotal conclusions reached in that judgment did not appeal to this Court. The mere fact that payment was not made at the time of entering the video parlour was irrelevant; payment made at a later stage by inserting a coin was nonetheless for being admitted to a place of entertainment. The fee being charged in a different manner at a different stage was in any case for providing entertainment. The decision in Harrish Wilson case was, therefore, in terms disapproved of

3. When the special leave petitions out of which these appeals arise came up for hearing, a Division Bench of this Court, on 5-11-1984, observed that the view taken in the case of Geeta Enterprise ( 1983 (4) SCC 202 : 1983 SCC(Tax) 307 : 1983 (3) SCR 812) required reconsideration

4. The case of Geeta Enterprises ( 1983 (4) SCC 202 : 1983 SCC(Tax) 307 :

1983 (3) SCR 812) has been followed by this Court in Standard Games v. State of U.P. ( 1996 (4) SCC 467 ) In any event, we have read the judgment in the case of Geeta Enterprises ( 1983 (4) SCC 202 : 1983 SCC(Tax) 307 :

1983 (3) SCR 812) and are in agreement therewith. No reconsideration thereof is, in our view, required5. Following the judgment in the case of Geeta Enterprises ( 1983 (4) SCC 202 : 1983 SCC(Tax) 307 : 1983 (3) SCR

812) the appeals are allowed and the orders under appeal are set aside. The writ petitions upon which those orders were passed are dismissed. No order as to costs