9911796707
TMI Blog1990 (12) TMI 195X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he reserve price is fixed on the basis of the rates, taxes, duties, etc. which are in existence till the day prior to the date of auction. These imposts keep changing and none of the parties has a control either over their variation or over the time of their variation. The dates of auction have necessarily to be fixed in advance. It is to obviate the hardship or to grant the necessary benefit, as the case may be, that purposely the period of 45 days laid down in clause 10 is stipulated to include the day of the auction as well. It is for this reason that we are unable to accept the contention advanced by Shri Shanti Bhushan and are in complete agreement with the impugned decision of the High Court on merits. Appeals dismissed. - 5965-66 of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... porter for the payment of any or all of such levies in respect of the coffees purchased at such auction and shipped within the above said period shall be to the account of the Board to the extent of 50 per cent of the increase in the rates of any or all such levies. Provided, however, the extent of such enhanced liability which will be to the account of the Board shall be 75 per cent of the increase in the rates of any or all such levies, if the coffees purchased at the auction are shipped within a period of 30 days from the date of the auction. Any increase in the rates of any or all of such levies on coffee attracting the increased rates and not shipped within a period of 45 days from the date of the auction at which the coffees were ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tion. For fixing such upset price, the Board takes into account, among other things, the existing rates of taxes and duties. Admittedly, when the auction was held on 18th May, 1977, the Board had taken into consideration, among other things, the export duty which existed till 17th May, 1977, i.e., the day prior to the date of the auction, and had fixed the reserve price accordingly. Since export duty is a component factor for the fixation of the upset price, the quantum thereof depends upon what the export duty at a given point of time is. 3. It appears that till 17th May, 1977 the export duty on coffee was Rs. 2,200/- per quintal. However, on the 18th May, 1977, i.e., the date on which the auction was held, it was reduced to Rs. 1,600/- ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... een the Board and the auction purchasers. Since the reduction in duty was effected on the date of auction, the said day was includible within the period of 45 days mentioned in the said clause. The Board, therefore, refused to refund the amount. 5. The appellants, therefore, filed separate writ petitions in the High Court for a direction to the Board to repay the amount paid by them. It is not necessary to go into the other disputes between the auction purchasers and the Board which related to either the adjustment of the amount paid against the other amounts due to the Board as in the case of the appellants M.S.P. Exports (P) Ltd. or the claim for additional amount of refund made by the Board against the other appellants, namely, Ramesh ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ts as well, we do not think it necessary to go into the question whether the contract between the parties was statutory or non-statutory and whether further assuming that the contract was statutory, writ petitions would lie for enforcing the terms of such contracts and the claims arising out of them. We propose to dispose of these appeals purely on the interpretation of clause 10 of the contract. 8. We have already reproduced at the outset Clause 10. The clause in terms states that any increase or reduction in taxes, duties etc. within 45 days of the auction (inclusive of the day of the auction) shall be shared between the auction purchasers and the Board. It is not disputed before us that neither the Board nor the auction purchasers were ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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