Consultative sales tax reference not a constitutional judgment, so appeal to the Supreme Court was unavailable.

A High Court decision on a statutory sales tax reference under the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1944 was treated as consultative rather than determinative, because the court only answered questions of law and the operative assessment still had to be made by the revenue authority. On that basis, the majority view was that the reference decision was not a "judgment" in the strict sense required by Article 133 of the Constitution, and the proceedings were not "civil proceedings" for appeal purposes. The dissent would have taken a broader constitutional reading, but leave to appeal to the Supreme Court was refused.

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Issues: Whether the High Court's decision on a sales tax reference under the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1944 was a "judgment" within Article 133 of the Constitution of India; and whether such a reference arose in a "civil proceeding" so as to sustain an appeal to the Supreme Court.

Analysis: The majority held that the decision delivered on a statutory sales tax reference was not a judgment in the strict legal sense contemplated by Article 133. The High Court's function under the taxing statute was consultative: it answered the questions of law and sent its view to the Board of Revenue, but the operative assessment order was still to be made by the Board. The majority also held that proceedings under the sales tax reference procedure were not civil proceedings within Article 133. The dissenting view treated the constitutional phrase more broadly and would have regarded the reference decision as appealable.

Conclusion: The application for leave to appeal was not maintainable under Article 133 and was rejected.

Final Conclusion: A statutory reference under the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1944 did not, on the majority view, furnish an appealable civil judgment for purposes of Article 133, and leave to appeal to the Supreme Court was refused.

Ratio Decidendi: A High Court decision on a revenue reference that is merely advisory or consultative, and which does not itself finally determine the parties' rights, is not a "judgment" in a "civil proceeding" within Article 133 of the Constitution of India.

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