Reference of question of law: court may decline to answer when the referring party and others show no interest.

The article addresses whether a High Court must answer a question of law referred by a Tribunal when the referring party declines to pursue the reference. It explains the governing principle that the obligation to decide arises only upon a hearing; if the party who caused the reference fails to appear, declines to prosecute, or otherwise shows no interest, the hearing condition is not met and the court may refuse to answer. The operative effect is that the court may dispose of such references without deciding the question, leaving legal questions open for determination in an appropriate case.

---

---

Issues: (i) Whether the High Court should answer a question of law referred by the Tribunal under Section 61(1) of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 when the party at whose instance the reference was made states it is not interested in the reference being answered.

Analysis: The Court reviewed authorities establishing that although a reference is made by the Tribunal, the obligation to decide a question of law arises upon a hearing of the case. Where the party who caused the reference either fails to appear, appears but declines to prosecute the reference, or otherwise shows no interest in having the question answered, the preliminary condition of a hearing is not satisfied and the High Court is not bound to answer the question. The Court considered precedent holding that withdrawal as of right is not available to the party who caused the reference, but that the High Court may decline to answer the reference when there is no hearing or the parties are not interested. Applying these principles to the facts, the applicant/appellant before the Tribunal informed the Court that it was no longer interested in pursuing the reference and the revenue likewise showed no interest.

Conclusion: The Court declined to answer the question(s) referred by the Tribunal and disposed of the references, keeping the questions of law open for decision in an appropriate case.

---