O   R   D   E   R

(Per Shri Jayant S. Prabhu, President)

By this Order we shall dispose of the Complaint filed by the Complainant.

As per the complaint the Complainant purchased a new vehicle Ford Fiesta Classic from the dealer Caculo Ford Pvt. Ltd.  According to him he paid a sum of Rs. 70,851.00 as VAT  i.e. 12.5% on the cost of the vehicle.  When he went to register the vehicle at R.T.O., Margao, he found that the road tax is 9% on the cost of the vehicle and 8% if it is less than Rs. 6.00 lacs.  According to him he paid Rs. 57,699/- as road tax instead of Rs. 45,345/-.  As such according to him he is entitled for a sum of Rs. 12,354/- as refund with interest.

According to the Complainant he thereafter approached to the Assistant Director and the Dy. Director of Transport to redress his grievance.  However, he could not get a favourable reply.  As per the contention of the Complainant he is required to pay road tax on cost of the vehicle only and not on the sale value of the vehicle.  According to him the sale value means the cost of the vehicle alongwith VAT.  According to the Complainant road tax has to be levied only on the cost of the vehicle and not on the sale value of the vehicle.

Ultimately the Complainant prays that he is entitled for refund of sum of  Rs. 12,354/- which he has paid on and above the tax which he is not bound to pay.  He also claims for a sum of Rs. 2,00,000/- as damages and a sum of Rs. 200/- as cost of the complaint.

The Opposite Parties have filed their written version.  As per the written version this Forum has no jurisdiction to entertain the complaint as the levy and collection of road tax  under the Motor Vehicle Tax statute is the sovereign function of the State and therefore this Forum has no jurisdiction to entertain the complaint filed by the Complainant.   The Opposite Parties also submit that the Complainant is not a consumer within the definition under section 2(d) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

As per the Opposite Parties the tax collected by them is as per the Government Motor Vehicle Tax (Amendment) Act 2013 and as such this Forum cannot question the validity of any statute lawfully passed by the Legislative Body of the State.  Ultimately the Opposite Parties submit that the complaint is not tenable in law and therefore requires to be dismissed.

After hearing both the parties we find that we have to decide the  question of jurisdiction before we proceed to decide the case on merits.  Admittedly the present Complainant is a purchaser of the vehicle who cannot be treated as a consumer who has availed services for consideration vis-à-vis the Opposite Parties.  The Opposite Parties have been collecting the tax as per the Goa Motor Vehicles Tax (Amendment) Act 2000 which provides the schedule of taxation under the said Act. The question as to whether the tax which has been collected by the Opposite Parties is legal or illegal cannot be decided by us.  This Forum have limited jurisdiction under the Consumer Protection Act 1986.    The tax is a levy which is without quid pro quo. Hence relying on the decision of the Hon’ble Kerala State Consumer Redressal Commission reported in 2009(1) CPR 211 we find

this Forum has no jurisdiction to try and entertain the present complaint. The Complainant has knocked the doors of the wrong Forum.  Accordingly the Complainant to present the complaint before proper Forum.

         Order accordingly.

                                                                          (ShriJayant S. Prabhu)

                                                                               President

                                                                      (Ms. Savita G. Kurtarker)

                                                                             Member

                                                                   (Ms. Cynthia A. Colaco)                                                             

                                                                                  Member