1952 (8) TMI 17 - HC - VAT and Sales Tax

Summary

Issues Involved:
1. Whether the sales in question took place within the Province of Madras.
2. Whether the imposition of sales tax was justified under the Madras General Sales Tax Act.
3. Whether the Madras General Sales Tax Act has extra-territorial operation and is therefore ultra vires.

Detailed Analysis:

1. Whether the sales in question took place within the Province of Madras:
The appellant argued that the title to the goods sold passed only in Calcutta because the documents of title were taken in the name of the sellers and delivered to the purchaser on payment of the price at Calcutta. Consequently, there was no sale within the Province of Madras, and no liability to pay the tax arises under the Act. The Government contended that for purposes of the General Sales Tax Act, the question of whether there was a sale within the Province of Madras should be determined based on where the transaction took place, not where the property passed in the goods. The court held that the word "sale" in the Madras General Sales Tax Act must be understood in a popular sense. Sales tax can be levied if the transaction substantially takes place within the Province, notwithstanding that the property in the goods does not pass within the State.

2. Whether the imposition of sales tax was justified under the Madras General Sales Tax Act:
The court examined the object of the Sales Tax Act, which is to impose a tax on all sales, and it is a tax imposed on the occasion of sale. The Government is interested only in collecting tax due in respect of the sale and must satisfy itself that the sale took place within the Province of Madras. The court found that the firm had its head office in Madras, maintained its accounts there, the goods were in Madras and delivered to common carriers in Madras, and the sale price was entered in the Madras accounts. Therefore, the sales in question took place within the Province of Madras, and the imposition of sales tax was justified.

3. Whether the Madras General Sales Tax Act has extra-territorial operation and is therefore ultra vires:
A contention was raised that on this construction, the Madras General Sales Tax Act would have extra-territorial operation affecting transactions concluded in other States and would, therefore, be ultra vires. The court referred to the decision of the Privy Council in Wallace Brothers & Co. v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Bombay, which stated that given a sufficient territorial connection between the person sought to be charged and the country seeking to tax him, income-tax may properly extend to that person in respect of his foreign income. The court also referred to other authorities, including Wadia v. Commissioner of Income-tax, Bombay, and Commissioners of Taxation v. Kirk, concluding that the attack on the Madras General Sales Tax Act on the ground that it is extra-territorial in its operation must fail.

Conclusion:
The appeal was dismissed, and the court upheld the imposition of sales tax on the transactions in question, concluding that the sales took place within the Province of Madras and the Madras General Sales Tax Act was not extra-territorial in its operation.