9911796707
TMI Blog2004 (11) TMI 538X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ing are singed with gas for burning the loose fibres. Thereafter, the braidings are cut into one meter length and polished on polishing machines. The same are then dyed and impregnated in varnish. Thereafter, the braidings are dried through a heating process and cut into the sleevings of the required sizes. 3.. In the return filed by it for the assessment year 1988-89, the respondent claimed exemption from payment of tax on the ground that the goods manufactured by it are covered by entries 30, 30-A, 30-B and 30-C of Schedule B of the 1948 Act. The Assessing Authority rejected the respondent's claim and assessed the goods to tax. On appeal, the Deputy Excise and Taxation Commissioner (A), Rohtak, held that empire cloth and empire cloth tapes manufactured by the respondent fall within the ambit of entry 30-B of Schedule B of the 1948 Act and as such, the same are exempt from tax. However, he rejected the respondent's claim for exemption of sleevings by making the following observations: "I have considered this plea of the dealer and I do not find myself in agreement with the view taken by the learned counsel. The reason is that the braided cords processed into sleevings could ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and retailer, and finally, the consumer who, in the last analysis, pays the tax. Parliament would not suppose in an Act of this character that manufacturers, producers, importers, consumers and others who would be affected by the Act, would be botanists. The object of the Excise Tax Act is to raise revenue, and for this purpose to class substances according to the general usage and known denominations of trade. In my view, therefore, it is not the botanist's conception as to what constitutes a 'fruit' or 'vegetable' which must govern the interpretation to be placed on the words, but rather what would ordinarily in matters of commerce in Canada be included therein. Botanically, oranges and lemons are berries, but otherwise no one would consider them as such." 8.. The above reproduced observations were quoted with approval by the Supreme Court in Ramavtar Budhaiprasad v. Assistant Sales Tax Officer [1961] 12 STC 286; AIR 1961 SC 1325. While interpreting the word "vegetables" occurring in C.P. and Berar Sales Tax Act, 1947, their Lordships of the Supreme Court held as under: "........But this word must be construed not in any technical sense nor from the botanical point of view b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... n whether manufactured by handloom or otherwise, but does not include pure silken fabrics, carpets, druggets, woollen durree and cotton floor durrees. The entry, in turn, does not refer to sleevings and other articles manufactured by using a yarn, but keeping in view the principles laid down by the Supreme Court in interpreting such entries, we shall consider whether the sleevings manufactured by the respondent fall within the meaning of "textile" used in common parlance or by trading community. 13.. In English Electric Company of India Ltd. v. Government of India 1977 Tax LR 2260 (Mad.), Mohan, J. (as his Lordship then was) considered a question whether imported periglass sleevings or silicon elastomer coated glass sleevings could be classified as textiles. After making reference to various dictionary meanings of the word "textile" and certain text books on manufacturing technology of continuous glass fibres, Mohan, J., observed as follows: "As laid down by the division Bench, in State of Tamil Nadu v. East India Rubber Works [1974] 33 STC 399, the word 'textile' occurring under item 53 must be interpreted according to its ordinary or popular sense, the sense in which they a ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he character of 'nylon twine' and 'nylon yarn' is distinct and separate, even if the source material is the same. 'Nylon twine' cannot be considered to be 'nylon yarn' in common parlance either. While cotton threads can be rewoven or retwisted into cotton yarn with ease, once nylon yarn is made into nylon twine, the process cannot be reversed and it would not be possible to restore twine into yarn." 18.. In view of the above discussion, we hold that insulation sleevings manufactured by the respondent do not fall within entry 30 of Schedule B of the 1948 Act. 19.. Before concluding, we may notice the ratio of the judgment of the Supreme Court in Porritts Spencer (Asia) Ltd. v. State of Haryana [1978] 42 STC 433; AIR 1979 SC 300 and a judgment of Madras High Court, to which reference has been made in the order of the Tribunal. In the first case, the Supreme Court considered whether dryer felts manufactured by the assessee falls within the ambit of entry 30 of Schedule B of the 1948 Act. After noticing the process of manufacturing the dyer felts, their Lordships of the Supreme Court observed as under: "There can, therefore, be no doubt that the word 'textiles' in item 30 o ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
