TMI Blog1969 (3) TMI 102X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pondent is a partnership firm carrying on the business of commission agent for the sale of gunny bags manufactured from jute. The following notification was issued by the Government Under Section 4(2) of the Act on August 11, 1959: In exercise of the powers conferred by Sub-section (2) of Section 4 of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1954 (Act No. of 1954) and in supersession of this department notification No. F.5(139) E T/57 dated the 19th December, 1958, the State Government being of the opinion that it is expedient in the public inter-rest to do so, hereby exempts from tax the sale of Bardana (Old new or being received as container) except on the first point at the hands of an importer in the series of sales in the State. The Respon ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... first point at the hands of an importer in Rajasthan in the present circumstances without levy of a similar tax on 'bardana' produced or manufactured in Rajasthan is unconstitutional and cannot be upheld. As a necessary corollary the assessment of tax on the imported gunny bags in the hands of Assessee under the notification is invalid in law. 2. Before the High Court a prayer for refund was made of the amount of the sales tax which had been realised by the Government on the imported bardana Although the High Court felt that the Government was bound to repay the amount which had been collected but it declined to grant any relief on the ground that nothing had been stated in the writ petition as to how much amount of tax had be ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... any tax to which similar goods manufactured or produced in that State are subject so as not to discriminate between goods so imported and goods manufactured or produced. The construction or interpretation which has been commended by the Learned Counsel for the State of Article 304(a) is that the State has been empowered to impose tax on goods imported from other States or from the Union territories where goods of the same nature are not being manufactured in the State and if they are being manufactured then the tax has to be levied in such a way that there should be no discrimination between the goods so imported and the goods which are manufactured or produced in the State. It is pointed out that in the present case gunny bags made of jute ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... s bardana of the type of gunny bags would be subjected to tax whereas the other kinds or bardana would not be so subjected. No reasonable basis has been suggested for making a separate classification of bardana in the shape of gunny bags and other types of bardana . The learned Judges of the High Court who are likely to be familiar and fully conversant with Hindi which is the official language in the State of Rajasthan had no doubt that (the word bardana could not be confined to gunny bags and must be regarded as including other containers of the nature mentioned. This is particularly so because in the notification the word container is used.) 6. On this view the exception to the exemption in the notification which is clearly ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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