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TMI Blog1969 (12) TMI 119X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... le and interest in those articles and handed over them to be placed in a museum for which aforesaid Trust was created by him. According to the petitioner, this museum was founded for the benefit of the public and the visitors who visited the historic city of Jaipur. It is also contended that research scholars, students of history and persons interested in archaeology, architecture, science or arts derive benefit out of this museum which provides an opportunity for further studies and to augment their knowledge in the above subjects. The entrance fee that is charged from the visitors to the museum ranges from Re. 1/- to Rs. 4/- per head and the collection made from the entrance fee is utilised for the improvement of the museum and other charitable purposes. It is said that His Highness donated a further amount of rupees one lac for the upkeep and maintenance of the said museum. On the 1st December, 1961, the Entertainment Tax Officer-cum-Sales Tax Officer 'B' Circle, Jaipur City, issued a notice to the petitioner to pay entertainment tax leviable on the admission tickets issued by the Trust and demanded year-wise account of the sale of the tickets issued till 15th December, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... x the proceeds received by the museum which is spent for charitable and educational purposes. In spite of the notice received, no account was submitted by the petitioner to the assessing authority for completing the assessment, and, therefore, the assessing authority proceeded to access the petitioner without any material before it and passed an order on the 3rd October, 1968, which is placed on record as annexure L. From this order it appears that the following findings were given by the assessing authority; namely the Commercial Taxes Officer 'B' Circle, Jaipur: (1) The museum comes within the definition of entertainments as given in the Act. (2) Tax is leviable on the admission fee charged for admissions. (3) The Director has failed to comply with the provisions of sec. 6(1) which lays down that no person shall be admitted to an entertainment except with a ticket stamped with adhesive stamps denoting that proper entertainment tax has been paid. (4) The offence under sec. 6(1) is being committed daily. According to report of the Commercial Taxes Inspector dated the 20th September 1968, the number of persons admitted on 17-7-68, 18-7-68, 19-7-68 and 20-7-68 was ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... t as given in the Act. Regarding the letter issued by the Commissioner that 'museums' do no fall within the definition of 'entertainment' it was averred that there can be no estoppel against statutes and the opinion of the Commissioner is not binding on the assessing authority to discharge his duties under the provisions of the Act. It was also averred that it was wrong to say that only the students of history or research alone find an entry in the museum. According to the respondents, this museum is open to all and even the farmers and pilgrims, who visit Jaipur, go to see this museum after the payment of the regular fees charged from every visitor. A plea was also raised by the respondents in their reply that the petitioner has an alternative remedy by way of appeal under the statute which was not availed by him, and, therefore, he cannot be permitted to invoke the extraordinary jurisdiction of this Court under Art. 226 of the Constitution. 6. Since the question of jurisdiction of the assessing authority has been raised by the petitioner for levying a tax under the provisions of the Act, I think the petitioner cannot be prohibited from invoking the extraordina ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... r. Gupta further urged that the expression entertainment which includes exhibition, show, performance, amusement, game or sport must be in nature of exhibition, show etc. Simply because a student of history gets amusement out of the exhibits put in the museum because he is interested in events of the past through those articles, it is difficult to see that those articles do provide entertainment to the visitors. In support of this argument, Mr. Gupta placed reliance on the following decided cases of the various High Courts. (2) Cantonment Board vs. W.I. Theatres Limited; (AIR 1954 Bom. 261) S.S. Enterprises vs. State (AIR 1956 Punjab, 203) State of Bombay vs. Chamarbaugwalle, and (AIR 1956 Bom. 1) Calico Mills Ltd. vs. State of M.P. (AIR 1961 M.P. 257), and also an unreported decision of the bench of this Court in His Highness Maharaja Shri Gajsinghji of Jodhpur vs. The State of Rajasthan decided on the 4th September, 1967. 11. Mr. M.M. Vyas appearing for the respondents on the other hand contended that when any term has been defined by the Act itself, then the court need not see its ordinary dictionary meaning and give the true meaning according to the definition given in the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sale inside. The admission to the Dome was free and unrestricted during the morning hours between 9 A.M. and 12 noon, but the entry was restricted in the evening hours from 4 P.M. to 9 P.M. to bona fide purchasers who were required to obtain a token of the value of Rs. 2/- which amount later on was to be adjusted towards the price of cloth purchased by the person visiting the Dome. In order to attract a large number of visitors, the calico fabrics were displayed artistically in the Dome by mannequins who used to wear and show off Saries, costumes etc. manufactured by the Mills. The department wanted to tax the earnings of the Mills under the provisions of the C.P. and Berar Entertainment Duty Act, 1936, and an argument was advanced before their Lordships of the Madhya Pradesh High Court that the exhibition of the fabrics produced by the Mills in the well decorated Dome did attract the application of the expression entertainment which was defined exactly in the same manner in which it has been defined in the Act Their Lordships were dealing with the expression entertainment as defined in that Act expressed that 'exhibition' is included in the expression 'entertainme ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... shop establishment where wearing apparels are displayed on dummy models. Nothing turns on the fact that the display by mannequins was on a stage or on the fact that there was a seating arrangement inside the Dome for having a good view of the display, or again on the fact that 'many fashionable ladies and gentlemen of the town were attracted more towards the show than towards the purchase of cloth . Many of them might have gone to the place merely for the purpose of watching the display and seeing something which they had not seen before. But the fact that these people went out of curiosity and novelty did not make the exhibition of cloth or the display by mannequins inside the Dome an entertainment. It is clear from these observations that the plea that weighed with learned Judges while deciding that case was that the main object for having such a display of the fabrics produced by the Mills was not to provide any amusement or gratification who went to see that exhibition but it was done mainly to attract people to augment the sale of the products of the Mills displayed in that Dome, and, therefore, in such circumstances their Lordships were not prepared to accept the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ce is not available to the petitioner in the present case. 17. In the State of Bombay vs. Chamarbaugwalia (supra), the matter before the court was whether the cross-word puzzle does provide any entertainment in the terms of the expression used in the Act. Their Lordships while examining that question observed that the entertainment or amusement contemplated is something objective outside the person amused or entertained, and, therefore, the entertain-ment tax can be levied on a spectator who witnesses some amusement or entertainment. 18. On the basis of these observations Mr. Gupta urged that in the present case there is neither amusement nor entertainment in the exhibits put in the museum and it is only the visitors who may either be amused or may return without any such amusement after visiting the place, and, therefore, this test that the amusement or entertainment should contemplate something objective outside the person amused is not satisfied in the present case. 19. While considering that argument, the learned Judges did observe that the entertainment and amusement contemplated by Entry No. 33 of List II with regard to legislation and entry 62 of List II with regard ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... es an admission to any palace in which an entertainment is held. After taking into consideration the various definitions of the terms their Lordships came to the conclusion that admission to the palace which is the used in the Act, private building of the Maharaja and where things have not been exhibited for entertainment cannot attract the application of the Act, and, therefore, the department could not levy an entertainment tax on such entry. 22. An argument was advanced by the department in that case that certain articles of interest just as paintings, furniture or stuffed heads of wild animals etc. have been exhibited in the room which were shown to the visitors, and, therefore, such an exhibition of articles of interest attracted the application of the Act. It was argued on behalf of the Maharaja that they were the pieces of furniture of that room and they were not put there for show. This argument prevailed with the learned Judges and they held that in the circumstances of the case entry allowed in a private building by the proprietor thereof on charging certain fees would not attract the provisions of the Act. 23. In my opinion, the circumstances of that case were enti ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... est, and, therefore, it such articles which provide entertainment to the persons who come to see them, then the exhibition of those articles can be conveniently covered by the expression entertainment. 26. It is not disputed that the entry to the museum is not restricted only to the students of history or archaeology etc. but any person whether he is a farmer, pilgrim or a child can visit it after paying the entrance fee levied by the petitioner. The exhibits displayed in the museum are valuable pictures, paintings, portraits, works of art, caskets, silver ware, ivory ware, china ware, glass ware, cut glass, books of arts, ornaments pieces, priceless rugs, armoury antics, curious manuscripts and others. It may be possible that every item exhibited may not provide entertainment to the visitor; but one or the other may provide entertainment even to those who are ignorant about the historical or other educational values of those articles. In such circumstances, I cannot accept the argument of learned counsel for the petitioner that the museum which is primarily used for education of the people cannot be subjected to entertainment tax. 27. The Commercial taxes officer while ass ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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