TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2011 (5) TMI 701
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.... petitioners released an advertisement in which the engine was described as having 109 BHP, BHP being British Horse Power. The second respondent, the Inspector of Legal Metrology, Kanhangad, issued Ext. P1 show cause notice to the second petitioner, the Chief Operating Officer (Automotive Sector) of the first petitioner Company, stating that the description of power of the engine of the vehicle in question in the old imperial system unit of BHP (British Horse Power) is violative of the provisions of law mentioned above. On receipt of Ext. P1 show cause notice, the second petitioner issued Ext. P2 reply to the second respondent stating that the advertisement in question does not violate the provisions of law mentioned in Ext. P1 show cause notice. It was contended that the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 is an Act to establish standards of weights and measures, to regulate inter-State trade or commerce in weights, measures and other goods which are sold or distributed by weight, measure or number, and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto, and that the vehicle is not being sold or distributed by weight, measure or number. Therefore, it was cont....
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....asures used or expressed". Ext. P3 was concluded by saying that the legal action mentioned in Ext. P1 notice will be continued and that if the petitioners want to compound the matter departmentally, they may appear before the second respondent. Mention is also made in Ext. P3 that the offender in the case being a Company, every person who was in charge of and was responsible for the conduct of the business of the Company as well as the Company will be held responsible for the offence. In this Writ Petition, the petitioners pray for a declaration that they are entitled to express the unit of power of the vehicle/engine in the units of "horsepower" in advertisements or otherwise and for the issue of a writ of certiorari to quash Exts.Pl and P3 notices issued by the second respondent. 4. It is useful to extract the relevant provisions of the Acts and Rules. The Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 : Preamble : "An Act to establish standards of weights and measures, to regulate inter-State trade or commerce in weights, measures and other goods which are sold or distributed by weight, measure or number and to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental the....
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....nit of time and it shall be second. Section 8 deals with base unit of electric current and it shall be ampere. Section 9 states that the base unit of thermodynamic temperature shall be kelvin. Section 10 provides that the base unit of luminous intensity shall be candela. Section 11 states that the base unit of amount of substance shall be mole. Section 12 provides that the Central Government may, by rules, specify, in relation to the base units of weight or measure, such supplementary, derived, or other units or standard symbols or definitions as the General Conference on Weights and Measures or the International Organisation of Legal Metrology may recommend. The Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act, 1985 : Preamble : "An Act to provide for the enforcement of the standards of weights and measures established by or under the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto." Section 2 : "Act not to apply to inter-State trade or commerce :- Nothing in this Act shall apply to any inter-State trade of commerce in :- (a) any weight or measure, or, (b) an....
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....follows : "11. Unit of power, radiant flux and heat flux.- The unit of power, radiant flux and heat flux shall be the watt. (Symbol : W)" Rule 5 of the Standards of Weights and Measures (National Standards) Rules, 1988 reads thus : "5. Derived unit. - The unit defined and specified in the Second Schedule shall be derived units and the symbol assigned to each such unit in that schedule shall be the symbol of that unit and no other units shall be used for the entities specified in the Second Schedule except for the purpose of scientific or technological research." 6. The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 is a consolidating and amending Act. Section 39 of the said Act provides for the necessity for registration of motor vehicles. An application in Form No. 20 as provided in Rule 47 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989 shall be submitted for registration of the vehicle. Column 14 in Form No. 20 is "horse power". Form No. 21 is the sale certificate as provided in Rule 47 of the Central Rules and column 5 thereof is "horse power or cubic capacity". Form 23 issued as per Rule 48 of the Central Rules is the form of certificate of registration. Column 9 of Form No. 23....
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....aser would really be misled since in day-today life he refers to the horse power and not watts. When the manufacturers of vehicles, dealers of vehicles, educated and uneducated persons refer to the power of the engine of a vehicle, it is normally expressed in terms of horse power. The Court can take notice of the conduct of common people and the practice prevailing among people as the law is intended for the common people. If horse power of a vehicle is mentioned in the documents of title relating to a vehicle, why not it be mentioned in other records, advertisements, letters or other forms of communications? If people were to be convicted for mentioning the horse power of a vehicle or engine thereof, we have to convict and put in jail thousands of people. The Court shall not shut its eyes to the realities in life. 7. Apart from what is mentioned above, let us now consider the provisions of the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976, the Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act, 1985 and the Rules thereunder and see whether it would be an offence if horse power is mentioned instead of watt, in an advertisement in respect of a motor vehicle. Section 2 of the ....
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....andards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 deals with only units of weight or measure and evidently it excludes the units of number, the contention raised in Ext. P3 is that vehicles are being sold in terms of number along with other relevant specifications like their weight, power, engine capacity, etc. and, therefore, the Act is applicable in the case. This contention raised by the respondents is a far fetched one. The penal provisions of a statute cannot be applied unless the offence is clear and specific. A doubtful or a possible interpretation cannot be made the basis for initiating prosecution. It is to be noted that Section 41 of the Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act, 1985 provides that the offender shall be punished with fine which may extent to Rs. 2,000/- and, for the second or subsequent offence, with imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year and also with fine. It is possible that in respect of a single advertisement in a newspaper or magazine having circulation through out India, hundreds of criminal cases can be initiated against a company or an individual. It is also to be apprehended that if an advertisement is published on two consecutiv....