TMI Blog1984 (7) TMI 351X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and steel" for sales tax purposes up to 31st December, 1963, and assessing such sales to tax at 2 per cent. The assessing authority started calculating sales tax at 6 per cent on items mentioned above from 1st January, 1964, in pursuance of a departmental clarification issued on the basis of an interpretation given by the Government of India that these items would not come under the definition of "iron and steel" as defined under section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act and as notified under the Government notification dated 2nd March, 1963. The Commercial Taxes Officer, Special Circle-II, Jaipur, while assessing sales tax for the assessment year 1963-64 held that from 1st January, 1964, onwards sale of G.P. sheets, G.C. sheets and G.I. wires attracted a general rate of sales tax at 6 per cent while prior to 1st January, 1964, sales tax was leviable at 2 per cent. An appeal filed by the assessee was dismissed by the Deputy Commissioner, Commercial Taxes (Appeals), Jaipur. The assessee then filed a revision application before the Board of Revenue. The Board of Revenue agreed with the contention of the assessee's counsel that the departmental circulars could not change the legal posit ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the aforesaid question for answer of this Court. In these circumstances the above question of law has been referred to this Court. It may be mentioned at the outset that the Board of Revenue itself did not agree with the above view in latter decisions and in view of conflicting judgments, a larger Bench of the Board of Revenue was constituted to decide the above controversy. A larger Bench of the Board of Revenue consisting of three members in Radhaballabh and Sons v. State of Rajasthan reported in 1974 RRD 368 considered the above question and held that galvanised, corrugated sheets fell within the definition of "iron and steel" and that galvanisation and corrugation of the iron sheets or wires did not change their basic character from being iron and steel. The Board of Revenue placed reliance on a decision of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in State of Andhra Pradesh v. Sri Durga Hardware Stores, Vijayawada [1973] 32 STC 322. In the above Andhra Pradesh case it was held as under: "Galvanised plain or corrugated sheets and B.P. sheets fall within the ambit of 'iron and steel in entry 2 of the Third Schedule to the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957. The words 'that is ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , blooms and billets of all qualities, shapes and sizes); (iii) skelp bars, tin bars, sheet bars, hoe-bars and sleeper bars; (iv) steel bars (rounds, rods, squares, flats, octagons and hexagons, plain and ribbed or twisted, in coil form as well as straight lengths); (v) steel structurals (angles, joists, channels, tees, sheet piling sections, Z sections or any other rolled sections); (vi) sheets, hoops, strips and skelp, both black and galvanised, hot and cold rolled, plain and corrugated, in all qualities, in straight lengths and in coil form, as rolled and in rivetted condition; (vii) plates both plain and chequered in all qualities; (viii) discs, rings, forgings and steel castings; (ix) tool, alloy and special steels of any of the above categories (x) steel melting scrap in all forms including steel skull, turnings and borings; (xi) steel tubes, both welded and seamless, of all diameters and lengths, including tube fittings; (xii) tin-plates, both hot dipped and electrolytic and tinfree plates; (xiii) fish plate bars, bearing plate bars, crossing sleeper bars, fish plates, bearing plates, crossing sleepers and pressed steel sleepers, rails-heavy and light c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tegories of specified goods, the expression was apparently meant to exhaustively enumerate the kinds of goods on a given list. The purpose of an enumeration in a statute dealing with sales tax at a single point in a series of sales would, very naturally, be to indicate the types of goods each of which would constitute a separate class for a series of sales. Otherwise, the listing itself loses all meaning and would be without any purpose behind it. Learned counsel appearing for an intervener argued that the chemical composition of iron and steel affords a clue to the meaning of 'iron and steel' as used in section 14 of the Central Act. We are unable to agree that this could be what Parliament or any legislature would be thinking of when enumerating items to be taxed as commercial goods. The ordinary meaning to be assigned to a taxable item in a list of specified items is that each item so specified is considered as a separately taxable item for purposes of single point taxation in a series of sales unless the contrary is shown. Some confusion has arisen because the separate items are all listed under one heading: 'iron and steel'. If the object was to make iron and steel taxab ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... case [1976] 37 STC 319 (SC) the matter again came up for consideration before a Bench of the Madras High Court. The Madras High Court in Deputy Commissioner of Commercial Taxes, Tiruchirapalli v. P.C. Mohammed Ibrahim Marakayar Sons [1980] 46 STC 22 held that galvanised plain sheets, referred to as G.P. sheets or C.R. sheets, would not fall within the category of "iron and steel" under entry 4 of the Second Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, as it stood during the assessment year 1968-69 and, therefore, they are taxable at the multi-point rate. It was further held that galvanised plain sheets were previously known as zinc sheets and merely because a different expression has come to be used it does not mean that they retain the character of iron and steel plates. They are actually materials different from steel plates and their use is also different, and commercially they are different goods. It was observed that the decision of the Andhra Pradesh High Court in State of Andhra Pradesh v. Sri Durga Hardware Stores, Vijayawada [1973] 32 STC 322 was rendered at a time when the Supreme Court decision in State of Tamil Nadu v. Pyare Lal Malhotra [1976] 37 STC 319 (S ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Madras General Sales Tax (Turnover and Assessment) Rules, 1939". The State of Madhya Bharat (Now the State of Madhya Pradesh) v. Hiralal [1966] 17 STC 313 (SC) has already been distinguished by their Lordships of the Supreme Court in State of Tamil Nadu v. Pyare Lal Malhotra [1976] 37 STC 319 (SC). Deputy Commissioner of Agricultural Income-tax and Sales Tax, Quilon v. Travancore Rubber and Tea Co. [1967] 20 STC 520 (SC) is a case of the Supreme Court where the question was whether the assessee was a dealer within the meaning of section 2(b) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. It was observed that: "Where the only facts that were established were that the assessee converted the latex tapped from its rubber trees into sheets and effected a sale of those sheets to its customers and that the conversion of latex into sheets was a process essential for the transport and marketing of the produce. Held, that the onus of proving that the assessee was carrying on business and was, therefore, a 'dealer' within the meaning of section 2(b) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, was on the department and that the department had not discharged that onus." In State of Gujarat v. Sakarwala Br ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... stion is whether galvanised and corrugated iron sheets fall within the meaning of "iron and steel" under entry No. 23 of the notification dated 2nd March, 1963, issued under the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1954, and section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. There is no manner of doubt that after an amendment in 1972 abovementioned sheets have been included in the above clause, but we are concerned with the notification dated 2nd March, 1963, which was in force while dealing with the assessment year 1963-64. The view taken in State of Andhra Pradesh v. Sri Durga Hardware Stores, Vijayawada [1973] 32 STC 322 by the Andhra Pradesh High Court is no longer correct after the decision of their Lordships of the Supreme Court in State of Tamil Nadu v. Pyare Lal Malhotra [1976] 37 STC 319 (SC). The scope and meaning of the words "that is to say" have been enunciated by the Supreme Court and according to which the expression "that is to say" is apparently meant to exhaustively enumerate all kinds of goods on a given list. The term "that is to say" has been used in the relevant notification to be dealt by us and a general and wide meaning cannot be given to the term "iron and steel". In or ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ent need not be to the person who initially paid the tax. While dealing with this question it was observed that the amendment made in clause (b) of section 15 of the Central Act by Act No. 61 of 1972 can be taken to be an exposition by the legislature itself of its intent contained in the earlier provision. It was further observed that as a result of the amendment the legislature has clarified what was implicit in the provisions as they existed earlier. The above principle cannot be applied in the case of a notification which deals with declared goods and according to which the lower rate of taxation is applied. There is no question of clarifying by subsequent amendment in such a case. The notification dated 2nd March, 1963, was itself exhaustive to deal with all items of iron and steel and if it did not include corrugated and galvanised iron sheets, it would be held that the intention of the legislature was not to include the same earlier as it was done subsequently by an amendment made in 1972. In the case of such notification no retrospective intention can be given. On the contrary it goes to show that the legislature wanted to include such goods only in 1972 as the same were me ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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