Reference on questions of law upheld where sales tax liability and the Forty-sixth Amendment raised a substantive legal controversy.

Questions of law were held to arise from the Tribunal's order on the assessee's sales tax liability, including the effect of the Constitution (Forty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1982 and the absence of evidence of services rendered to customers. The High Court treated these issues as sufficient to warrant a statutory reference, because the record disclosed a substantive legal controversy rather than a purely factual dispute. The Tribunal was directed to draw up a statement of case and refer the identified questions to the High Court, and the reference application succeeded.

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Issues: Whether questions of law arose from the Tribunal's order so as to warrant a reference to the High Court under section 45(2) of the Delhi Sales Tax Act, 1975.

Analysis: The Tribunal had concluded that the assessee was not liable to pay tax after 4 November 1978 because no sales tax had been collected after that date, while also observing that the sales were otherwise taxable in the absence of evidence of services being rendered to customers. The High Court found that these circumstances raised questions of law, including the effect of the Constitution (Forty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1982, on the assessee's liability.

Conclusion: A referable question of law did arise, and the Tribunal was directed to draw up a statement of case and refer the stated questions to the High Court.

Final Conclusion: The application succeeded and the matter was sent back for reference on the identified questions of law.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the Tribunal's order turns on the legal effect of tax liability and constitutional amendment provisions, and the record discloses a substantive legal controversy, a reference is warranted under the statutory reference provision.

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