Way-bill issuance cannot be denied for unpaid tax where the governing rules do not require prior payment.

Way bills under Rule 45 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957 could not be refused merely because tax was stated to be unpaid, since payment of tax was not a prescribed condition for issuance. An assessing authority therefore could not add a further requirement beyond the rule or use denial of way bills as a coercive device for tax recovery. The Andhra Pradesh High Court treated the refusal as unjustified and granted relief, directing compliance with the governing way-bill rules.

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Issues: Whether the assessing authority could refuse to issue way bills merely because tax was stated to be unpaid, when Rule 45 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957 did not prescribe payment of tax as a condition for issuance.

Analysis: The only statutory condition relevant to issuance of way bills was compliance with Rule 45 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules, 1957. Payment of tax was not one of the conditions set out in that rule. A refusal to issue way bills on the ground of non-payment of tax, therefore, introduced an additional requirement not found in the governing rules. The Court also noted that denial of way bills could not be used as an extra-legal method to coerce tax payment.

Conclusion: The refusal to issue way bills was unjustified and the petitioner was entitled to relief.

Final Conclusion: The writ petition succeeded and the respondent was directed to act in accordance with the rules governing way-bill issuance.

Ratio Decidendi: An authority cannot insist on a condition for statutory issuance of way bills that is not prescribed by the governing rules, nor can it use denial of way bills as a coercive device for tax recovery.

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