Tax Management India. Com
Law and Practice  :  Digital eBook
Research is most exciting & rewarding


  TMI - Tax Management India. Com
Follow us:
  Facebook   Twitter   Linkedin   Telegram

TMI Blog

Home

2007 (10) TMI 561

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... r than balanced cattle feed. Revisions are allowed. The order of the Tribunal is set aside and the matter is remanded back to the Tribunal to decide the appeals afresh in the light of the observations made above. - - - - - Dated:- 29-10-2007 - RAJES KUMAR , J. RAJES KUMAR J. Present two revisions under section 11 of the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948 (hereinafter referred to as the Act ) are directed against the order of the Tribunal dated April 7, 2000 relating to the assessment years 1994-95 and 1995-96. The dealer-opposite party (hereinafter referred to as the dealer ) was carrying on the business of manufacture and sales of cattle feed which consists of 90 per cent molasses, two per cent urea, one per cent sewar, five per cent ordinary salt and two per cent black salt. In the returns filed by the dealer, exemption on the turnover of cattle feed was claimed up to September, 1994 and thereafter on the turnover of such cattle feed, five per cent tax was admitted and paid. However, during the course of the assessment proceeding, dealer disputed the taxability on the cattle feed even for the period after October 1, 1994. The claim of the dealer was that after October 1, 19 .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... d has been excluded from cattle fodder. The cattle feed which was excluded means cattle feed in all forms and nature, including balanced cattle feed. Therefore, all kinds of cattle feed which were earlier held to be covered under cattle fodder, being fed by the cattle, in various decisions of this court and apex court have been excluded from the entry cattle fodder . He submitted that after October 1, 1994 under Notification No. TT-2-3403/XI-9 (116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 balanced cattle feed has been made taxable at the rate of five per cent and other cattle feed are liable to tax as an unclassified item at the rate of eight per cent. The learned counsel for the dealer submitted that by Notification No. TT-2-3401/XI-9 (116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 from the entry cattle fodder , balanced cattle feed has only been excluded. He submitted that the word balance , which has been used prior to poultry feed also qualifies cattle feed and all other cattle feed has not been excluded with effect from October 1, 1994 and by the Notification No. TT2-3403/XI-9 (116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 balanced cattle fe .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... r 1, 1994 or liable to tax after October 1, 1994. The issues for consideration are as follows: 1.. Whether from the Notification No. TT-2-3401/XI-9(116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 from the entry cattle fodder only balanced cattle feed has been excluded or all kinds of cattle feed has been excluded which also includes the balanced cattle feed? 2.. Whether the cattle feed manufactured by the dealer is still covered under the entry cattle fodder under the Notification No. TT-2-3401/XI-9 (116)-94-U. P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 and was exempted from tax? 3. Whether the cattle feed manufactured by the dealer was balanced cattle feed and liable to tax under the Notification No. TT-2-3403/XI-9 (116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 at the rate of five per cent or liable to tax as an unclassified item as not balanced cattle feed? Issue Nos. 1 and 2. A bare perusal of Notification No. TT-2-3401/XI-9 (116)-94-U.P. Act 15-48-Order-94 dated October 1, 1994 referred hereinabove both in English and Hindi versions reveals that the cattle feed has been excluded from the entry cattle fodder . The word cattle feed is after balance .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... ished that where the language of a section is plain and unambiguous, it is not open to courts to read into it limitation which are not there based on an a priori reasoning, as to the probable intention of the Legislature. Such intention can be gathered from the words actually used in the legislation and what is unexpressed has the same value as to what is unintended . . . In the case of Commissioner of Sales Tax, Gujarat v. Union Medical Agency reported in [1981] 47 STC 170; [1981] UPTC 520, the apex court held as follows (page 176 of STC): . . . If the meaning of the section is plain, it is to be applied whatever the result. (1)See [2008] 18 VST 148 (All) [App] In the case of Assessing Authority-cum-Excise and Taxation Officer, Gurgaon v. East India Cotton Mfg. Co. Ltd. Faridabad reported in [1981] 48 STC 239; [1981] UPTC 1319, the apex court held as follows (page 245 of STC): It is a well-settled rule of interpretation that a statute must be construed according to its plain language and neither should anything be added nor subtracted unless there are adequate grounds to justify the inference that the Legislature clearly so intended. In the case of Commiss .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... The words 'poultry feed' has acquired a definite connotation in livestock farming and so also has the word 'concentrates' and whereas the feed simpliciter is essential for the maintenance of poultry, the concentrates, that is, vitamins in the food-stuff enable the poultry to maintain energy, to perform the vital process of life and provide the material to replace the essential tissues, breakdown of which occurs in the body continuously. From the materials available on the subject, it is by now clear that all food-stuffs are composed of water and organic and mineral matters. Organic matter is composed of proteins, fats, crude fibre and soluble carbohydrates. Besides the above, there are certain substances known as vitamins, which are considered to be essential for the proper nutrition of farm stock. The ration of an animal may be divided for convenience into two parts: (1) maintenance ration, viz., the portion of the diet which just enables the animal at rest to carry on the essential processes of life, such as breathing and circulation of blood, without either gain or loss of weight; and (2) feed supplied over and above the maintenance requirement for augment .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

..... in the case of poultry. Further, it has been held that to make the poultry feed, a balanced poultry feed, it is essential to include the vitamins or concentrates. So, it is addition of concentrates in the poultry feed which makes it a balanced poultry feed. Short of vitamins or the concentrates, the poultry feed cannot be said to be a balanced poultry feed. It means that for a balanced feed, it is essential that there should be vitamins and concentrates which augment the production. Therefore, if in feeds there are such concentrates which augment the production, it will be a balanced cattle feed even though, there are no vitamins. It may be mentioned here that the presence of vitamins by name is not essential. It may be possible that vitamins are available in the constituent of the product. The nature of the constituent can only be worked out by chemical analysis. In the present case, without chemical analysis, opinion has been formed that there was no vitamins. Further, the Tribunal has also not considered whether the cattle feed manufactured by the dealer increases the production or not. This aspect of the matter has not been examined. In this view of the matter, I am of th .....

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

→ Full Text of the Document

X X   X X   Extracts   X X   X X

 

 

 

 

Quick Updates:Latest Updates