9911796707
TMI Blog1978 (11) TMI 134X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... from taxation certain goods. In the said G.O., as many as 20 items are enumerated, but we are now mainly concerned with item No. 3 therein, viz., fresh milk, curds and buttermilk. Before we proceed further, we would like to point out very briefly the facts which gave rise to this tax revision case. The petitioner is a dealer in eggs, dressed chicken, fruits, etc. For the assessment year 1971-72, he returned a gross turnover of Rs. 3,29,633.70 and claimed exemption in respect of a turnover of Rs. 3,26,058.70. The assessing officer granted the exemption and arrived at a net taxable amount of Rs. 3,575, which represented the sales of dressed chicken. To put it in other words, the assessee himself, when he filed the return, did not claim any ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n. Item 3 thereof is "fresh milk, curds and buttermilk". In the original G.O. of 1957 only those words were mentioned. But by G.O. Ms. No. 60 dated 10th January, 1961, the words "sold by dealers exclusively dealing in them" were added and later by another G.O. Ms. No. 1786, Revenue, dated 20th November, 1962, the following words were also added: "and their products realised by utilisation of surplus thereof". As a consequence of these additions, item 3 in the said G.O. now and also at the relevant time of the assessment, reads thus: "Fresh milk, curds and buttermilk (sold by dealers exclusively dealing in them) (and their products realised by utilisation of surplus thereof)." It is worthy of note that this qualification "sold by dealers e ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... exclusively". There they were concerned with bakery goods which were exempt from tax, if they were dealing exclusively in such goods and if they were not sold in containers and packets. But, in that case, in addition to the bakery goods, the dealer was selling eggs as well. Another item of the same schedule of the Punjab Act exempted meat, fish and eggs except when they were sold in tins, bottles or cartons. The learned Judges held that the mere fact that a dealer sells two exempted goods will not make the dealer selling goods, which are exempt, liable to sales tax merely because he is also selling another tax-free goods, namely, eggs. Otherwise, it would result in nullifying both the exemptions which result could not be envisaged. In the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n G.O. Ms. No. 1091, only the words "fresh milk, curds and buttermilk" occurred and there were no qualifying words. The qualifying words, as we have pointed out, were added by G.O. Ms. No. 60 dated 10th January, 1961. There is no doubt that they were added with the specific purpose and intention of limiting the exemption from tax in respect of sales of fresh milk, curds and buttermilk, only if the dealer exclusively deals in them. It will be doing violence to the language of the G.O. in general, and item 3 in particular, if it is construed that the exemption will be still available to the dealer even though he does not deal exclusively in fresh milk, curds and buttermilk but also sells some other exempted commodity. We are not, therefore, w ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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