Articles 284 and 285 form part of Part XII of the Constitution of India. Article 284 deals with the custody of suitors' deposits and certain other moneys received by public servants and courts. Article 285 deals with the constitutional exemption of property of the Union from taxes imposed by a State or an authority within a State.
Article 284 regulates specified moneys received by public officers and courts. It requires such amounts to be paid into the appropriate public account of India or public account of the State.
All moneys received by or deposited with -
(a) any officer employed in connection with the affairs of the Union or of a State in his capacity as such, other than revenues or public moneys raised or received by the Government of India or the Government of the State, as the case may be, or
(b) any court within the territory of India to the credit of any cause, matter, account or persons,
shall be paid into the public account of India or the public account of the State, as the case may be.
Article 284 deals with money held in an official or custodial capacity rather than ordinary government revenue. It covers money received by an officer connected with the affairs of the Union or a State in that officer's official capacity, subject to the exclusion expressly stated in the Article.
It also covers money deposited with a court to the credit of a cause, matter, account or person. The constitutional direction is that such money must be credited to the appropriate public account of India or of the State, depending upon the circumstances.
For constitutional purposes, the Public Account is distinct from the Consolidated Fund. Article 284 specifically directs the categories of money covered by it into the public account of India or the corresponding public account of the State.
Article 284 should therefore be read in the broader constitutional framework governing public finances, including Articles 282 and 283 concerning public funds and public accounts.
Article 285 establishes a constitutional rule governing taxation of property belonging to the Union by States and authorities within States.
(1) The property of the Union shall, save in so far as Parliament may by law otherwise provide, be exempt from all taxes imposed by a State or by any authority within a State.
(2) Nothing in clause (1) shall, until Parliament by law otherwise provides, prevent any authority within a State from levying any tax on any property of the Union to which such property was immediately before the commencement of this Constitution liable or treated as liable, so long as that tax continues to be levied in that State.
Clause (1) provides the general rule that property of the Union is exempt from taxes imposed by a State or by an authority within a State. The exemption is constitutionally qualified by the words permitting Parliament to provide otherwise by law.
Accordingly, the constitutional immunity is not expressed as an absolute prohibition beyond Parliament's legislative control. Parliament retains the constitutional authority to make a law providing otherwise.
Clause (2) contains a transitional saving. It preserves, until Parliament otherwise provides by law, the levy of a tax on Union property where that property was liable, or treated as liable, to that tax immediately before the commencement of the Constitution, provided the tax continues to be levied in that State.
Articles 284 and 285 appear in Part XII of the Constitution dealing with finance, property, contracts and suits. Readers examining these provisions may also refer to Articles 282 and 283, Articles 286 and 287, and Articles 288 and 289 for related constitutional provisions concerning taxation and financial relations.
For the authoritative constitutional text and amendments, readers should consult the Constitution of India published by the Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice, Government of India.
Official Constitution of India - Legislative DepartmentThis article is intended as a general legal reference. The official constitutional text and applicable judicial decisions should be consulted when dealing with a specific legal issue.