TMI Blog1974 (1) TMI 89X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... of the case, the medicinal preparations given to the named patients on his own prescriptions by a registered medical practitioner amounts to a manufacture of medicine and pharmaceutical preparations? (2) Whether the petitioner is a 'dealer' within the provisions of the Punjab and Central Acts and the medicines prepared on his own prescriptions and delivered to his own patients who actually consult him amount to 'sale' within the meaning of the Punjab and the Central Acts?" The assessee is an ayurvedic practitioner and the proprietor of Messrs. Navratna Kalpa Pharmacy, Jullundur. He tours throughout India and after seeing the patients gives them medicines prepared by him. The bills issued to them generally show separately the amount of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ork did not constitute any "business". He was not a manufacturer and was only a consulting qualified physician and gave medicines or mixtures only after he had seen the patients and never prescribed them otherwise. The Commissioner was doubtful whether the assessee could be held to be a dealer. According to him, the assessee only prescribed medicines and charged for them along with his consultation fee. He went from place to place, examined the patients and prescribed medicines. The revision petitions were, accordingly, allowed. Thereafter, on suo motu action, the learned Financial Commissioner (Sales Tax Tribunal) was of the view that the assessee's earnings were the result of the sale of medicines manufactured by him. Those medicines we ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... f the Punjab Act and the relevant portion of it says: "'Dealer' means any person ..... who in the normal course of trade sells or purchases any goods that are actually delivered for the purpose of consumption in the State of Punjab.........." No definition of "manufacture" is, however, given in the said Act. So far as this court is concerned in Dr. Baldev Raj v. The State of Punjab and Another[1969] 24 S.T.C. 50., B.R. Tuli, J., observed: "A doctor who only dispenses his own prescriptions for his patients is a 'dealer' within the meaning of section 2(d) of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948, and he himself manufactures or produces goods for sale as contemplated in section 4(5)(b) of the Act. There is no difference between the case ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... facturer of medicines and pharmaceutical preparations within the meaning of the notification and, therefore, not assessable to tax on the turnover of medicines so dispensed. Against that decision, the Commissioner of Sales Tax, U.P., moved the Supreme Court. The sole question that arose for decision before it was whether by virtue of the said notification, the assessee was exempt from liability to pay tax. The relevant part of the said notification was as under: "In exercise of the powers conferred by section 3-A of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948, as amended from time to time, and in supersession of all the previous notifications on the subject, the Governor of Uttar Pradesh is hereby pleased to declare that with effect from May 8, 1956, the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... armaceutical preparations separately is not liable to tax; when under his direction they are mixed by his employees for the special use of a patient under his treatment and to achieve a specific purpose, the turnover from the resultant mixture is taxable. In the absence of clearer phraseology, the court would not in a taxing provision be willing to give that interpretation." As a result of this finding, the appeal was dismissed. According to the above decision, if a medical practitioner prepares some medicine by mixing different drugs and uses the same for the treatment of some disease which has been diagnosed by him by his professional skill and that medicine is normally incapable of being passed from hand to hand as a commercial commodi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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