1967 (4) TMI 188

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..... es of "braided cord", relying for the purpose on entry 4 in the Third Schedule of the Madras General Sales Tax Act, 1959, which is in the following terms: "All varieties of textiles (other than durries, carpets, druggets and pure silk cloth) made wholly or partly of cotton, staple fibre, rayon, artificial silk or wool including handkerchiefs, towels, napkins, dusters, cotton velvets and velveteen, tapes, niwars and laces and hosiery cloth in lengths." The view of the department was that the assessees' products would not fall within the scope of the above entry. But the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal, in the appeals before them, considered that the above sales fell within the entry mentioned above and granted to the assessees exemption fro .....

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..... he above sense. The entry, however, is in general terms and refers to varieties of textiles. Handkerchiefs, towels, etc., including laces, are given only as illustrations by means of an inclusive definition. But the exemption granted being to "all varieties of textiles" is given in very general terms. The real question for our consideration therefore is whether braided cord is a variety of textiles. The entry excludes certain products like durries, carpets etc., but it is clear that braided cord does not come under the articles excluded. Therefore, one has to address oneself to the question whether braided cord is really a textile for the purpose of the entry. "Textile" is defined in the above dictionary, as woven fabric or material suitabl .....

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..... a somewhat different approach. Differing from the department's view it found that braided thread would fall under the category of "laces" mentioned in entry 4 of the Third Schedule. For that purpose it referred to the definition of "lace" in the Chambers's Twentieth Century Dictionary, as an article which includes "plaited string for fastening" besides ornamental fabrics of linen, cotton, silk, etc., to which we have referred earlier. But it appears to us that it is the more ordinary meaning of "lace", as commonly understood, as an ornamental fabric, rather than its rare use to mean a plaited string for fastening, like shoe-laces, etc., that was intended to apply to the entry in question. In fact, some of the braided cords produced before .....

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