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TMI Blog1995 (8) TMI 288X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e Pondicherry General Sales Tax Act, 1967. On the other hand, the assessing officer has rejected their claim in all the four years and levied tax at the rate of 3 per cent treating them as sales in sealed containers. Aggrieved, the assessee filed appeals before the Appellate Assistant Commissioner. The Appellate Assistant Commissioner confirmed the order passed by the assessing authority, in all these assessment years under consideration. Aggrieved, the assessee filed second appeals before the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal. The Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal, after hearing the parties concerned, reversed the order passed by the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and held that the sales of atta, maida, sooji, etc., sold in one kilogram polythene bags during the assessment years under consideration are not sales of atta, maida, sooji in sealed containers, liable for tax as per the provisions of the Pondicherry General Sales Tax Act, 1967. Aggrieved by that order, the department is in revision before this Court. 3.. Learned Government Pleader for Pondicherry submitted that the Tribunal was not correct in reversing the well considered order of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner in holdi ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , unless, they are sold in sealed containers. In the present case, learned counsel appearing for the assessee submitted that the abovesaid products were sold only by packing in the polythene bags. What was done by the assessee is only packing the products like atta, maida, sooji, etc., in the polythene bags and the said polythene bags containing the abovesaid products were not again put in a container for the purpose of sale. According to the learned counsel, unless the polythene bags containing atta, maida, sooji, etc., were packed in another container, the sale cannot be considered as sale of the abovesaid products in sealed containers. Learned counsel also brought out the difference between packing and filling in a container. Since container is absent in the present case, according to the learned counsel exemption cannot be denied for the sale of the abovesaid products in polythene bags. Learned counsel further relied upon various decisions of the Supreme Court and High Courts in order to support his contention that exemption should not be denied for sale of atta, maida, sooji, etc., packed in polythene bags. Therefore, according to the learned counsel, the Tribunal was correct ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... at or whether access could be had to them without in any manner breaking any portion of the cover. It is not necessary for a container to be a sealed container that to get access to its contents, the container or cover has to be broken by removing the fastening although it would be the most common method of opening a sealed container. All that is necessary for a container to be a sealed container is that access cannot be had to its contents without breaking the fastening or some portion of the container." 8.. According to the facts arising in the abovesaid decision, the assesseefirm, a manufacturer of chikki and farsan, sold the chikki made by it by (i) inserting the paper packed chikki in heat-sealed polythene bags and (ii) putting the chikki in cardboard boxes and inserting them in heat-sealed polythene bags. The question was whether the polythene bags in which the chikki was sold by the assessee were sealed containers within the meaning of entry 6 of Schedule E to the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959. It is while deciding this question it was held that as the chikki could not be got except after breaking the polythene bags at some place, the chikki sold by the assessee must be said ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Act, 1956, held that the expression sealed container means, a container which is so closed that access to the contents is impossible without breaking the fastening. The expression "seal" in this context does not involve an affixture of the seal of the seller such as impressing a signet in wax, etc., as evidence or guarantee of authenticity. An article may be regarded as put in sealed containers if it is closed securely in any vessel or container by any kind of fastening or covering that must be broken before access can be obtained to what is packed inside. 12.. While considering the meaning of the words "sealed containers" occurring in Bengal Finance (Sales Tax) Act, 1941 as extended to the Union Territory of Delhi Schedule II, entry 1, the Delhi High Court held that loosely stapled polythene bags, in which it is possible to get at the contents without breaking the staples are not sealed containers within the meaning of entry 1 in the Second Schedule to the Bengal Finance (Sales Tax) Act, 1941, as extended to the Union Territory of Delhi and therefore the turnover of pop corn sold in such bags is entitled to exemption under that entry. 13.. In the case of Commissioner of Sales ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y the petitioner are containers within the meaning of the provisions of sub-sections (5) and (6). However, under sub-section (7) the benefit is specifically in respect of packing materials. Then the question to be decided is whether the containers purchased by the assessee can be treated as packing material." 15.. The Andhra Pradesh High Court, while considering the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957, Schedule I, entry 19 in the case of State of Andhra Pradesh v. Swapna Mahila Co-operative Super Bazar reported in [1995] 98 STC 123, explained the word "container" in the following manner: "In G. Claridge Company Limited v. Collector of Central Excise (1991) 52 ELT 341, the Supreme Court considered the meaning of the expression 'container' for the purpose of classification under the Central Excise Tariff Act. After referring to the meaning of the said expressions given in Websters' New Collegiate Dictionary (1975) and Chambers' 20th Century Dictionary, the Supreme Court has observed that a 'container' is used in three different senses: viz., (1) in a broad sense, (2) in a narrow sense, and (3) in a more limited sense. In a broad sense, it means a receptacle which contain ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nd cannot be transported as such. The Supreme Court laid down that the test to find out whether the word in a relevant entry of a statute is used in a narrower sense or a broad sense, is to look into the context in which the word has been used in the entries. The well-accepted principle of statutory construction is that when two or more words which are susceptible of analogous meaning are coupled together they are understood to be used in their cognate senses and that is based on the principle that words take as it were their colour from each other, that is, the more general is restricted to a sense analogous to a less general. 17.. According to the facts arising in the present case, the assessee was selling wheat products like atta, maida, sooji, etc., in one kilogram polythene bags which were sealed by mechanical device. The containers are so closed that access to the contents is impossible without breaking the fastening. Therefore, we hold that the sealed polythene bags in which the wheat products like atta, maida, sooji, etc., were sold are sealed containers and therefore, the sale turnover of the assessee in all the assessment years under consideration are liable to be taxed ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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