TMI Blog1994 (11) TMI 388X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... eel v. State of Andhra Pradesh [1989] 74 STC 379. The Supreme Court observed: "It is commonly accepted that a transaction of sale may consist of a sale of the product and a separate sale of the container housing the product with respective sale considerations for the product and the container separately; or it may consist of a sale of the product and a sale of the container but both sales being conceived of as integrated components of a single sale transaction; or, what may yet be a third case, it may consist of a sale of the product with the transfer of the container without any sale consideration therefor. The question in every case will be a question of fact as to what are the nature and ingredients of the sale. It is not right in law ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... on for the packing is merged with the consideration for the product would not make the sale of packing an integrated part of the sale of the product." We may incidentally mention that in that case it was also held that section 6-C of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 (for short "the Act") was declaratory of the position which was obtaining even before its insertion of section 6-C in the Act. The effect of the decision of the Supreme Court in the abovesaid case is that where there is an independent agreement between the seller and the purchaser for the sale of the bottles, the turnover has to be taxed at the rate applicable to "bottles" prescribed under the Act, but, where there is no independent agreement with regard to s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... h the assessee called the price of the empty bottles "deposit", it was not treated as such in accounts and that the accounts did not disclose that the amounts were deposited in individual khatas. It further added that there was no condition or any sale agreement that the bottles should be returned within a stipulated time and that there was clearly a transfer of property in the bottles for money consideration along with the liquor or beer sold. For that reason, it concluded that the amount charged for the bottles forms part of the turnover and that the assessee had given the name "deposit" to avoid sales tax. On appeal, the appellate authority, having perused the accounts, sales bills and the debit notes, confirmed the finding of the asse ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ntents thereof, the bottles will have to be taxed as an independent item. No such attempt having been made, the case cannot be sent back to either the Tribunal or the assessing authority, as prayed by the learned counsel for the respondent, as it may amount to giving an opportunity to the assessee to make out a new case. Having regard to the provisions of section 6-C of the Act, which is held to be declaratory of the position which was obtaining even before its insertion in the Act, the bottles will have to be taxed at the rate of the "contents". In Circar Enterprises v. Commissioner of Commercial Taxes [1995] 97 STC 40 a Division Bench of this Court, on similar facts, held that the price was a single price for the bottled beer and th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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