Summarize the following court judgment. ivil Appeal No. 809 of 1966. Appeal by special leave from the judgment and order dated February 13	 1965 of the Assam and Nagaland High Court in Civil Rule No. 127 of 1963. Niren De	 Solicitor General	 A.N. Kirpal	 S.P. Netyar for R.N. Sachthey for the appellants. M.C. Setalvad and D.N. Mukherjee	 for the respondent. D.M. Sen	 Advocate General for the State of Nagaland	 A.R. Barthakur and R. Gopalakrishnan	 for the intervener. The Judgment of the Court was delivered by Hegde	 J. The only question that arises for decision in this appeal is whether the exclusion of the government servants from the exemption given under section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income Tax Act	 1922 and later on under section 10(26) of the Income Tax Act	 1961 is violative of article 14 of the Constitution. For our present purpose it may be taken that the said two provisions are similar. The respondent who is a government servant serving in the State of Assam has been assessed to income tax for the assessment years 1959 60	 1960 61	 1961 62 and 1962 63. He challenged the legality of his assessments in civil rule No. 127 of 1963 on the file of the High Court of Judicature of Assam. The Assam High Court accepted his petition and quashed the assessments in question holding that section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income tax Act. 1922 as well as section 10(26) of the Income Tax Act	 1961 to the extent they excluded government servants from the benefit of the exemption given thereunder are void. The income tax authorities as well as the Union of India have come up to this Court in appeal by special leave. The facts of this case lie within a narrow compass. The respondent belongs to Mikir Scheduled Tribe and is a permanent inhabitant of United Khasi Jaintia Hills District	 an autonomous	 District included in Part 'A ' of the Table appended to Paragraph 167 20 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India. He is a government servant. All these are admitted facts. The respondent in his petition before the High Court averred (in para. 7 of the petition) that "in all the autonomous districts under Table	 Part A of paragraph 26 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution of India	 there are a large number of persons belonging to Scheduled Tribe who derive considerable income from trade	 commerce and business and other sources and employments and immovable properties". In the return filed by the appellants those allegations were not denied. Adverting to those allegations this is what was stated in the affidavit filed by Shri S.K. Dutta	 Income tax Officer (the first appellant in the appeal): "With reference to the statements made in paragraph 7 of the petition I say that the petitioner being a government servant his case stands on a different footing other than the general public of the Scheduled Tribe. " It may be remembered till 15 8 47	 Khasi and Jaintia Hills were not parts of British India. They were under native States. They merged with British India only after this country got independence. Till their merger	 none of the Indian laws applied to those areas. The Finance Act of 1955 incorporated into the Indian Income Tax Act	1922	 s.4(3) (xxi). The relevant portion of section 4(3) reads thus: 4(3). "Any income profits	 or gains falling within the following classes shall not be included in the total income of the person receiving them." (xxi). "Any income of a member of a Scheduled Tribe	 as defined in clause (25) of Article 366 of the Constitution	 residing in any area specified in Part`A or Part B of the table appended to paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution	 provided that such member is not in the service of Government." Sec. 10(26) of the income tax Act of 1961 which corresponds to section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income Tax Act	 1922	 reads thus : "In the case of a member of a Scheduled Tribe as defined in clause (25) of Article 366 of the Constitution	 residing in any area 'specified in Part A or Part B of the Table appended to paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution or in the Union Territories of Manipur and Tripura	 who is not in the service of Government. any income which accrues or arises to him	 (a) from any source in the area or Union Territories aforesaid	 or (b) by way of dividend or interest on securities. " 168 Part of the impugned assessments were made under the Indian Income Tax Act	 1922 and the rest	 under the Income Tax Act	 1961. If the aforementioned provisions are valid	 then the assessments in question are beyond challenge. Therefore the only question for decision is whether the legislature had no power to exclude the government servants from the benefit of the exemptions given under the aforementioned ss.4(3) (xxi) and 10(26). It is seen that the income of the members of a scheduled tribe included in cl. 25 of article 366 of the Constitution and residing in my area specified in Part A or Part B of the Table appended to paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution	 excepting 1hat of government servants is exempt from income tax. in other words	 the government servant alone is excluded from the	 benefit of the exemption given under the provisions quoted above. It is agreed that the respondent is a member of the scheduled tribe included in cl. 25 of article 366 of the Constitution	 residing in an area specified in Part A of the Table appended to para. 20 of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution	 but yet he had been denied the benefit of the exemption in question on the sole ground that he is in the service of the government. It may be noted that exemption both under section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income Tax Act	 1922 and under s.10(26) of the Income Tax Act	 1961 was given to the members of certain scheduled tribes. For the purpose of the exemption in question the classification was made on the basis of persons being members of a particular tribe. That being so	 some of the members of that tribe cannot be excluded from the benefit of those provisions unless they can be considered as belonging to a well defined class for the purpose of income tax. The respondent 's contention which has been accepted by the High Court is that the government servants cannot be considered as a separate class for the purpose of income tax. On the other hand it is contended on behalf of the Department that the classification made is a reasonable one	 taking into consideration administrative convenience as well as the past legislative practice and history. It is not in dispute that taxation laws must also pass the test of article 14. That has been laid down by this Court in Moopil Nair vs State of Kerala(1). But as observed by this Court in East India Tobacco Co. vs State of Andhra Pradesh(2)	 in deciding whether a taxation law is discriminatory or not it is necessary to bear in mind that the State has a wide discretion in selecting persons or objects it will tax	 and that a statute is not open to attack on the ground that it taxes some persons or objects and not others; it is only when within the range of its selection	 the law operates un (1) ; (2) ; 	 409. 169 equally	 and that cannot be justified on the basis of any valid classification	 that it would be violative of article 14. It is well settled that a State does not have to tax everything in order to tax something. It is allowed to pick and choose districts	 objects	 persons	 methods and even rates for taxation if it does so reasonably. The complaint in this case is that within the range of the selection made by the State for the purpose of exemption	 namely	 members of certain scheduled tribes residing in specified areas	 the law operates unequally and the inequality in question cannot be justified on the. basis of any valid classification. There can be no distinction between the income earned by government servant and that earned by a person serving in a company or under a private individual. More or less similar is the case in respect of the income earned by persons practising one or more of the professions. Admittedly the income earned by the members of the scheduled tribes residing in Khasi Jaintia Hills. excepting in the case of government servants is exempt from income tax be it as salaried officers	 lawyers	 doctors or persons other walks of life. Is there any legal basis for this differentiation ? Prima facie it appears that the government servants have been discriminated against and the discrimination in question is writ large on the face of the provisions in question. The learned Solicitor General contended that the classification in question can be justified on administrative grounds. He urged that a classification based on administrative convenience is a just classification in the matter of levying taxes. According to him it is easy to collect taxes from government servants. Therefore	 it was permissible for the legislature to deny them the exemption extended to the other members of their tribes. This contention appears to be without merit. It may be that for the purpose of taxation a classification can be made on the basis of administrative convenience. But we fail to see how the case of the government servants stands on a footing different from that of the employees in statutory corporations or even well recognised firms. That apart	 administrative convenience which can afford just basis for classification must be a real and substantial one. We see no such administrative convenience. The learned Solicitor General	 next contended that 'the classification can be justified on the basis of past legislative practice and history. In this connection he invited our attention to the fact that before this country got independence	 the income of the persons in the service of the government 'but serving outside British India such as in Baluchistan	 or native States was subject to tax under the Indian Income Tax laws though other persons residing in those places were not subject to the income tax laws in force in British India. The L10 Sup C1/67 12 170 reason for the same is that the Indian legislature had No. legislative competence to tax the residents of those areas	 but it had competence to tax the income of the persons in government service though they might be serving outside British India. The learned Solicitor General next invited our attention to a notification issued by the Government of India as long back as 6 6 1890	 under which the income earned by members of certain scheduled tribes other than those serving under the government was exempted from income tax. He also invited our attention to Finance department Notification No. 788F dated 21 3 1922 under which the income of indigenous hill men other than persons in the service of government	 residing in certain areas were exempt from tax. On the basis of those notifications	 he wanted us to spell out a well recognised legislative practice and history under which the government servants as a class were excluded from the benefit of income tax exemption extended to other persons similarly situated. In this connection	 he placed reliance on the decision of this Court in Narottam Kishore Dev Varma and Ors. vs Union of India and another(1). Therein this Court was called upon to consider the validity of section 87B of the Code of Civil Procedure which prescribed that a Ruler of a former Indian State cannot be sued in any court otherwise competent to try the suit except with the consent of the Central Government certified in writing by a Secretary to the Government. The validity of that provision was challenged on the basis of article 14. This Court upheld the. validity of that provision having regard to the legislative and historical background of that provision	 but at the same time observed that considered in the light of basic principles of equality before law	 it would be odd to allow the section to continue prospectively for all time to come. After setting out the legislative background of that provision	 this Court observed: "The legislative background to which we have referred cannot be divorced from the historical background which is to be found for instance	 in article 362. This Article provides that in the exercise of the power of Parliament or of any legislature of any State to make laws or in the exercise of the executive power of the Union or of a State	 due regard shall be had to the guarantee or assurance given under any such covenant or agreement as is referred to in clause (1) of article 291 with respect to the personal rights	 privileges and dignities of a Ruler of an Indian State. This has reference to the covenants and agreements which had been entered into between the Central Government and the Indian Princes before all the Indian States were politi (1) ; 171 cally completely assimilated with the rest of India. The privilege conferred on the Rulers of former Indian States has its origin in these agreements and covenants. One of the privileges is that of extra territoriality and exemption from civil jurisdiction except with the sanction of the Central Government. It was thought that the privilege which was claimed by foreign Rulers and Rulers of Indian States prior to the independence of the country should be continued even after independence was attained and the States had become part of India	 and that is how in 1951	 the Civil Procedure Code was amended and present sections 86	 87	 87A and 87B came to be enacted in the present form. " In the background set out above this Court upheld the validity of section 87B of the Code of Civil Procedure. We know of no legislative practice. or history treating the government servants as a separate class for the purpose of income tax. The government servants ' income has all along been treated in the same manner as the income of other salaried officers. We not know under what circumstances the notifications dated 5 6 1890 and 21 3 1922	 referred to. earlier	 came to be issue& But they are insufficient to prove a well established legislative practice. At the time those notifications were issued the power of the legislature to grant or withhold any exemption from tax was not subject to any constitutional limitation. Hence the validity of the impugned provisions cannot be tested from what our legislatures or governments did or omitted to do before the Constitution came into force. If that should be considered as a true test then article 13(1) would become otiose and most	 if not all	 of our constitutional guarantees would lose their content. Sri Setalvad learned counsel for the respondent is justified in his comment that classification based on past legislative practice and history does not mean that because in the past the legislature was enacting arbitrary laws it could do so now. It was the contention of the learned Solicitor General that exemption from income tax was given to members of certain scheduled tribes due to their economic and social backwardness; it is not possible to consider a government servant as socially and economically backward and hence the exemption was justly denied to him. According to the Solicitor General	 once a tribal becomes a government servant he is lifted out of his social environment and assimilated into the forward sections of the society and therefore he needs No. more any crutch to lean on. This argument appears to us to be wholly irrelevant. The exemption in question was not given to individuals either on the basis of their social status or economic resources. It was given to a class. Hence 172 individuals as individuals do not come into. the picture. We fail to see in what manner the social status and economic resources of a government servant can be different from that of another holding a similar position in a corporation or that of a successful medical practitioner. lawyer	 architect	 etc. To over paint the picture of a government servant as the embodiment of all power and prestige would sound ironical Today his position in the society to. put it at the highest is no higher than	 that of others who in other walks of life have the same income. For the. purpose of valid classification what is required is not some imaginary difference but a reasonable and substantial distinction	 having regard to the purpose of the law. It was lastly contended by the learned Solicitor General a contention which was not taken either in the return or before the High Court or in the appeal memo. that it is not possible to strike down only a portion of section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income Tax Act. 1922 and section 10(26) of the Income Tax Act	 1961	 namely	 the words "provided that such member is not in the service of government" found in section 4(3)(xxi) of the Indian Income Tax Act	 1922 and the words "who. is not in	 the1 service of government" in section 10(26) of the Income Tax Act	 1961	 as those words are not severable from the rest of the provisions in which they appear. Further; according to him it cannot be definitely predicated that the legislature would have granted the exemption incorporated in those provisions without the exception made in the ' case of government. servants. Therefore if we hold that those provisions as they stand are violative of ' article 14 then we must strike down the aforementioned sections 4(3)(xxi) and 10(26) in their entirety. We are unable to accept the contention that the words mentioned above are not severable	 from the rest of the provision in which they appear. They are easily severable. Taking into consideration the reasons which persuaded the legislature to grant the exemption in question we have no doubt that it would have granted that exemption even if it was aware of the fact that it was beyond its competence to exclude the government servants from the exemption in question. For the reasons mentioned above this appeal is dismissed with costs. V.P.S. Appeal dismissed.

Both under section 4(3)(xxi) of the Income tax Act	 1922 and section 10(26) of the Income tax Act	 1961	 income of the members of a scheduled tribe included in article 366(25) of the Constitution and residing in any area specified in Part A or Part B of the Table appended to Paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution	 excepting that of government servants	 ' is exempt from income tax. The respondent was a member of such a scheduled tribe residing in such an area	 but	 as he was a government servant	 he was assessed to income tax. He challenged the validity of the assessments and the High Court quashed the assessments holding that the two sections. to the extent they excluded government servants from the benefit of the exemption given thereunder	 were discriminatory and therefore void. In appeal to this Court. HELD: The State has a wide discretion in selecting persons or objects it will tax	 but within the range of selection made by it for the purpose of exemption	 namely	 among members of certain scheduled tribes residing in specified areas	 the law as stated in the two sections. operates unequally and the inequality cannot be justified on the basis of any valid classification. [168H; 169B C] (1) The classification of trials into government servants and others cannot be justified on the basis of administrative convenience viz. that it was easy to collect taxes from government servants	 because. their case does not stand on a different footing from that of the employees in statutory corporations or well established firms. [169F G] (2) There is no legislative practice or history treating government servants as a separate class for purposes of income tax. The reason for making	 in the past	 persons in the service of the government of British India serving outside British India subject to Indian income tax. is not t	 hat their income was treated in a manner different from that of other salaried officers in those areas	 but that the Indian Legislature had no legislative competence to tax residents of those areas but had competence to tax the income of persons in British Indian government service	 serving in those areas. Further	 the notification of 6th June 1890 under which the income earned by members of certain scheduled tribes	 other than those in government service	 was exempt from income tax	 and the notification of 21st March 1922. under which income of certain indigenous hill men	 other than those in government service. was exempt from tax	 are not sufficient to prove a well established legislative practice. Those notifications were issued at a time when the power of the legislature to grant or withhold any exemption from tax was not subject to any constitutional limitation. Classification based on past legislative 166 practice and history does not mean that because in the past the legislature was enacting arbitrary laws it could do so now. [170A; 171D F] (3) The social status and economic resources of a government servant are not different from that of another holding a similar position in a corporation or that of a successful medical practitioner	 lawyer	 architect etc. Therefore	 merely because a tribal becomes a government servant he is not lifted out of his social environment and assimilated into the forward sections of society. [172A B] (4) The portions of the two sections struck down are severable from the rest of the provisions in which they appear. [172E F]