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TMI Blog2001 (2) TMI 989X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... overnment of India undertakinga company within the meaning of the Companies Act having its place of business in Calcutta, registered under the Bengal Finance (Sales Tax) Act, 1941 and also under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. Importing newsprints from overseas, the petitioner is distributing it to the different publishers of different States, according to allotment made by the Registrar of Newspapers for India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. In the year 1992-93 the petitioner imported newsprints and sold to different buyers/allottees of different States in terms of the allotment orders issued by the Registrar of Newspapers for India, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting for printing newspapers. The petitioner therefore, c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ed that the petitioner is a canalising agent of Government of India and importing newsprint from overseas and distributing to the publishers of different States as per the allocation orders of the Registrar of Newspapers for India. Thus, the actual users of different States are getting the newsprints from the petitioner according to their allotment made by the Registrar of Newspapers for India. Such transfer of goods can only be deemed to be inter-State sale under section 3 of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 provided the conditions, which read as follows, for accepting a sale or purchase, are satisfied. "A sale or purchase of goods shall be deemed to take place in the course of inter-State trade or commerce if the sale or purchase,- (a) ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... to be gathered from their conduct and other circumstances. A long train of judicial decisions has worked out more or less artificial series of rules for determining the presumed intention of the parties. Hence, in deciding the dispute arising in reference to the facts and circumstances of the instant case, a few judicial decisions on this point may be taken into consideration. In a case reported in [1963] 14 STC 175 [Cement Marketing Co. of India (Private) Ltd. v. State of Mysore], the fact of the case was that the petitioner had factories in different parts of India outside the State of Mysore. The head office was in Bombay and branch office in Bangalore and he was a registered dealer under the Mysore Sales Tax Act, 1948. The purchasers ha ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ct did not disclose any covenant that supply had to be made from any particular factory but such contract was subject to the terms of the permit and the sale, therefore, could only be under a permit on the terms contained therein. Since the permit provided the condition that the supply had to be made from the factory situate outside Mysore, the contract was therefore, deemed to have contained a covenant that the goods would be supplied in Mysore from a place situate outside its buyers. 9.. In another case Union of India v. K.G. Khosla and Co. [1979] 43 STC 457 (SC), the respondent-company had its head office at Union territory and factory at Faridabad within Haryana State. Order is to be received at its office in Delhi. The goods used t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d yet the sale can be an inter-State sale". (43 STC 457). 10.. From the aforesaid decision, it is thus, clear that in order that a sale may be regarded as inter-State sale, it is immaterial whether the property in goods passes in one State or another. The question as regards the nature of the sale, i.e., whether it is an interState sale or an intra-State sale, does not depend upon the circumstance as to in which State the property in goods passes. It may pass in either State and yet the sale can be an inter-State sale. 11.. In the present case, it is an undisputed fact that newsprints cannot be purchased from the open market. The policy of sale and distribution of newsprints is taken by the Registrar of Newspapers for India (RNI). On th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he clause (a) of section 3 that the section 3(a) covers sales "other than those included in clause (b), in which the movement of goods from one place to another is the result of a covenant or incident of the contract of sale and property in the goods passes in either State". It, thus, appears that the property of the goods even if passes in either State and the movement of goods from one State to another is the result of the covenant or incident of contract of sale, it will cover the section 3(a) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956. In State Trading Corporation of India Limited v. State of Mysore [1963] 14 STC 188 (SC) already quoted above, same view was taken. The learned Members of the Board, therefore, were not justified to hold that the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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