Tax Exemption– Gazette notification was not operated by giving retrospective effect – Section 46A(1) of the Ordinance provides that if any undertaking which comes under the ambit of industrial undertaking, tourist industry or physical infrastructure facility set up in Bangladesh between 01.07.1995–13.06.2000 shall be exempted from the tax payable under the Ordinance. It is admitted that unit No.2 of the writ petitioner company has commenced its commercial operation on 16.06.1997. An application for tax exemption was filed on 10.12.1997 before the said undertaking was included within the ambit of the physical infrastructure facility by gazette notification on 01.12.1999. Due to this, the application was rejected lawfully. Moreover, the oil tank of the writ petitioner company applied for tax exemption on 12.06.2000 after the gazette notification comes into operation. The application was not made within the stipulated time as provided in Section 46A(2)(f) of the Ordinance. Section 46A(2)(f) of the Ordinance implicates that the application for approval of tax exemption is to be made within 180 days from the date of commencement of commercial operation or production. From the materials on record, it appears that the gazette notification was not operated by giving retrospective effect. Therefore, the rejection of the application was correct and proper. The oil tank in question is not entitled to get tax exemption in accordance with law. The nature of oil tanker comes within the ambit of the physical infrastructure facility in 02.12.1999, but unit No.2 of the writ petitioner company started its commercial operation on 16.06.1997 and made application for tax exemption on 12.06.2000, which is not within the statutory period of 180 days from the date of its commencement. As the oil tank in question was not within the purview of physical infrastructure facility at the relevant time when they made the application for tax exemption on 04.02.1988, the rejection of that application was legal. ...Ministry of Finance, BD =VS= Summit United Tanks Terminal Ltd., (Civil), 2021(1) [10 LM (AD) 181] ....View Full Judgment