9911796707
TMI Blog1990 (7) TMI 361X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Bengal Finance (Sales Tax) Act, 1941, as amended in 1987, include in their ambit those sales which are exempt from tax under rule 3(66a) of the Bengal Sales Tax Rules, 1941. 2.. The relevant facts and respective cases of the parties may be briefly put thus. Applicants carry on the business of manufacture and sales of iron and steel goods, namely, M.S. rounds, flats, angles and ribbed bars which are declared goods of special importance under section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. They are registered dealers under the 1941 Act, and also a small-scale industry, being so registered with the Directorate of Small Scale Industries, Government of West Bengal. The unit is situated outside the area of the Calcutta Metropolitan District an ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... is that the Commercial Tax Officer adopted a wrong view, and according to them, sales exempted from tax under rule 3(66a) or sales on which no tax is levied by virtue of that rule, are not sales on which tax is levied at the rate of two per cent or less and, as such, such sales were entitled to be deducted from gross turnover under section 6B(2)(a). Accordingly, they were not liable to pay turnover tax. That being so, refusal of declaration forms was incorrect. The case of the respondents, on the other hand, is that the applicants were liable to pay turnover tax under section 6B, and refusal of declaration forms for non-payment of such tax is authorised by rule 27AA(2)(c). 3.. Mr. Sanjoy Bhattacharjee, learned Advocate for the applicants ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... were at the material time exigible to tax at the rate of four per cent. But in view of rule 3(66a), those are exempted from tax in the hands of the applicants, that is to say, sales by the applicants were free from tax. So, the result is that no tax is levied or tax is not levied on the sales of such goods. That being the position, such sales are not contemplated to be included in and do not come within the ambit of sales "on which tax is levied at a rate of two per centum or less". Similarly, there being no levy of tax, it cannot be said that any rate of tax was levied on such sales. Even if it is assumed that zero or nil is theoretically a rate of tax in purely mathematical terms, then also it cannot be said that zero or nil rate is a ra ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... not just zero. The rate may be even a fraction of one per cent, i.e., something more than zero, but not merely zero. Moreover, the word used in section 6B(2)(a) is "levied" which is vastly different from "leviable". The word"levied"-contemplates an actual and positive levy, not merely a notional or nil levy. We, accordingly, hold that sales exempted from tax under rule 3(66a) are not included in the words-"those on which tax is levied at a rate of two per centum or less"-in section 6B(2)(a) of the 1941 Act. Therefore, such exempted sales are entitled to be deducted from gross turnover under section 6B(2)(a). Hence. the applicants were not liable to pay turnover tax on such sales. It was a misconception on the part of the Commercial Tax Off ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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