9911796707
TMI Blog2004 (8) TMI 653X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ate of tax within the meaning of Government Notification dated July 7, 1972?" Facts stated in the statement of the case are that the petitioner is a registered dealer in respect of State and Central law and is engaged in manufacture and sale of electrical conductors, wires of aluminium of various types and specifications and sizes for transmission and distribution of electricity. The assessee made inter-State sales in the year 1970-71 and furnished returns in accordance with the Central law. It was granted exemption under section 5(2)(a)(iv) of the State law read with section 8(2-A) of the Central law. Subsequently, vide, judgment dated November 5, 1973, in State v. Indian Aluminium Cable Ltd. [1974] 33 STC 152 (P H), it was held that exemption on supply to electricity undertaking was not applicable. It was held that exemption was subject to certain conditions in absence of which the same could not be available. The Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner (Sales), Ambala initiated suo motu revision proceedings under section 40 of the State Act read with section 9(2) of the Central Act, vide, notice dated June 28, 1975 on account of audit objection. Assessment was reopened by sett ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... llknown fact that wire is an intermediate product which finds its use mainly as a raw material for the manufacture of various articles of industrial and other uses. One such articles is electricity conductor. The process of converting simple wire into electricity conductor is a substantial manufacturing process which changes the end use of the articles from one as a raw material to another as a medium for transmission of electricity. In its original form it will answer to the description 'wires' but after the process of twisting and binding together strands of wire its basic character as raw material is changed and it becomes a finished product. The conversion in this case is not as simple or nominal as that of G.I. sheets into corrugated sheets which was the issue before the Calcutta High Court in Phanindra Nath Manna and Company v. Commercial Tax Officer [1974] 33 STC 292. Nor can the relationship between the wire and electricity conductor be described as one between genus and species such as between coal and charcoal which was the subject-matter of a Supreme Court case reported in Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Jaswant Singh Charan Singh [1967] 19 STC 469. Rather, as mentioned a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in Commissioner of Sales Tax, U.P. v. Lal Kunwa Stone Crusher (P.) Ltd. [2000] 118 STC 287, Park Leather Industry (P.) Ltd. v. State of U.P. [2001] 122 STC 82 and Real Optical Co. v. Appellate Collector of Customs [2001] 122 STC 555. He also relied upon entry 33B of the Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 (since amended) to the following effect: The learned counsel for the Revenue on the other hand submitted that conductors were a different article than wires and since exemption was applicable only to wires, the same could not be extended to conductors which was commercially a different commodity. He supported the reasoning of the Tribunal. As regards the first question, it is clear that under section 40 of the State Act read with section 9(2) of the Central Act, the power of suo motu could be exercised. Section 40 of the State Act is as under: "(1) The Commissioner may on his own motion call for the record of any case pending before, or disposed of by any officer appointed under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the Act to assist him or any assessing authority or appellate authority, other than the Tribunal, for the purposes of satisfying himself as to the le ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Income-tax Officer is not affected.' These principles clearly support our view that in this case the Income-tax Officer had jurisdiction to proceed under section 34(1)(b), because he had a reason to believe that income chargeable to tax had escaped assessment or had been under-assessed or excessive relief had been granted as a consequence of the information which came to him from the external source of the decisions of the Tribunal and the High Court in the assessment proceedings of Bisesar House." We are, thus, of the view that on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, suo motu power of revision could be exercised on the basis of a subsequent judicial pronouncement. Accordingly, answer to the first question has to be in favour of the Revenue and against the assessee. As regards the question whether in the term "wires" entitled for concessional rate, the term "conductors" was included, we are of the view that the Tribunal rightly held that the conductors were different commercial items. Contention on behalf of the assessee is that where the article in question retains its basic character and is given the same treatment, it could not be held that it was a different a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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