TMI Blog1980 (2) TMI 85X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... these felts which are manufactured by it are used only for industrial purposes. 3. With regard to cotton felts the petitioner on or about 17th November, 1970 made an application to the Superintendent, Central Excise, Faridabad for the grant of licence to manufacture the said paper maker's cotton dryer felts. It is stated that on the advice received that the said item fell under the description of "mattress fabrics" and was classified under Tariff Item 19 (I) (1) of the Excise Act, the petitioner completed form No. 1 (Classification List of Excisable Goods Produced or Manufactured and Intended to be removed by the Assessee) prescribed under the Excise Rules. This was submitted for approval and on 31st March, 1971 approval, until further orders, was granted by the Excise Authorities, Faridabad. Subsequently on 6th April, 1971 the petitioner submitted a revised form No. 1 on the basis that the said cotton dryer felts should in fact be classified under Tariff Item No. 19(I)(2) (f) i.e., "cotton fabrics not otherwise specified". This form was not approved because according to the Superintendent the said goods fell within Tariff Item 19(I)(1). Against the said communication dated 12th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... remand the Assistant Collector made some enquiries and by the letter dated 1st November, 1972 he sent the petitioner copies of the information which he had collected from the Indian Standards Institute and the reports of the Chemical Examiner. As per the said documents the felts manufactured were to be regarded as fabrics. The petitioner appeared before the Assistant Collector on 4th November, 1972 and submitted three affidavits purported to be of persons in fabric trade, and two affidavits of persons concerned with manufacture and sale of paper maker's felts and one other certificate from a person connected with the fabric trade. The contention of the petitioner, based on the aforesaid affidavits and documents, which it had filed, was that the felts manufactured by it were not a fabric as contemplated by the said Tariff Items 19 and 21. The contention of the petitioner was, however, not accepted and by order dated 2nd December, 1972 the Assistant Collector held that the cotton and woollen fabrics,manufactured by the petitioner fell within the purview of Tariff items 19 and 21 respectively. Against the aforesaid order the petitioner filed an appeal to the Appellate Collector, Ce ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ter alia, held that the items in question were exigible to duty under Tariff Items 19 and 21. 6. The petitioner has filed the present writ petition challenging the aforesaid order dated 1st September, 1979 and has also prayed that it should be declared that the paper maker's felts manufactured by it do not fall within the meaning of fabrics under Items 19 and 21. The petitioner has further prayed for the refund of the excise duty collected by the respondents from it. Before us also the only contention raised on behalf of the petitioner is that the felts made by it are not fabrics. It is the contention of the petitioner that it is a well established principle that in construing an entry in a taxing statute resort should be had not to the technical, scientific or dictionary meaning but to the meaning attached to the item by those dealing in the goods in the commercial sense. It is contended that the petitioner's products are in common parlance of the trade known as 'paper maker's felts' and not as any kind of fabric. The petitioner has placed reliance on the Supreme Court decisions in the cases of Commissioner of Sales Tax, U.P. v. M/s S.N. Brothers, AIR 1977 S.C. 78; Dunlop Indi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ludes dhoties, sarees, chadders, bed-sheets, bed-spread, counter panes, table-cloths, embroidery in the piece, in strips or in motifs and fabrics impregnated, coated or laminated with preparations of cellulose derivatives or of other artificial plastic material........" I(2) Others- (f) Cotton fabrics not otherwise specified. 21. Woollen Fabrics. - "Woollen Fabrics" means all varieties of fabrics manufactured wholly of wool or which contain 40 per cent or more by weight of wool and includes blankets, lohis, rugs, shawls and embroidery in the piece, in strips or in motifs........" (1) Woollen fabrics, other than embroidery in the piece, in strips or in motifs." What is to be seen is as to what is regarded as a 'fabric' in common parlance. The Supreme Court in Gujarat Woollen case was concerned with the interpretation of entry No. 21. In that case the petitioner was manufacturing woollen felts. It was in admitted case that there were two types of felts, namely, woven and non-woven. In the said Supreme Court decision what was in question was as to whether the non-woven felts could be regarded as woollen fabric or not. The Supreme Court observed that "fabric means woven mater ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... as that the sale of felts were exempt from the levy of sales tax as it fell within the exempted category of "all varieties of cotton, woollen or silken textile" specified in Item 30 of Schedule B of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948. The sales tax authorities held that the felts were not textile. The High Court on a reference also came to the conclusion that felts were not included in expression "textile" and were thus not exempt from tax. Before the Supreme Court the question arose whether the dryer felts manufactured by the petitioner could be regarded as textile or not. The Supreme Court held that the word "textile" in Item 30 must be interpreted according to the popular sense. It was observed that "the word 'textiles' is derived from the Latin 'texere' which means `to weave' and it means any woven fabric. When yarn, whether cotton, silk, woollen, rayon, nylon or of any other description or made out of any other material is woven into a fabric, what comes into being is a 'textile' and it is known as such". It was further observed that the use to which a product is put does not determine its character at all. Dealing with the nature of the felts manufactured by the petitione ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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