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TMI Blog1987 (4) TMI 82X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for consideration in this appeal at the instance of the Revenue is whether the High court was justified in holding that in the absence of a notification withdrawing the earlier Notification dated 25-11-1958 made in exercise of power vested under Section 4 of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, 1948, Sales, tax would not be exigible in terms of the Notification dated 1-12-1973 issued under Section 3A of that Act. 4. This notification of 1958 exempted 'cotton fabrics of all varieties' from sales tax. It is not disputed that under it sale of patta, the goods in question on being treated as cotton fabric was exempted from sales tax. The notification of 1973 made under Section 3A of the Act prescribed sales tax of seven per cent on the sale of belt ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... oubt that the intention is to withdraw the exemption and make the sale liable to tax at the rate prescribed in the notification. As the power both for the grant of exemption and the variation of the rate of tax vests in the State Government and it is not the requirement of the statute that a notification of recall of exemption is a condition precedent to imposing tax at any prescribed rate by a valid notification under Section 3A, we see no force in the contention of the assessee which has been upheld by the High Court. In fact, the second notification can easily be treated as a combined notification - both for withdrawal of exemption and also for providing higher tax. When power for both the operations vests in the State arid the intention ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... excisable to sales tax by virtue of the Notification dated 1-12-1973 even though they fall within "cotton fabrics of all kinds" which are exempted from tax by virtue of the notifications dated 14-12-1957 and 25-11-1958. Similar question arose in the case of Porritts & Spencer Asia Ltd. v. State of Haryana "T1978: (42) S.T.C. 433 (S.C.) = 1983 E.L.T. 1607 (S.C.)] before this Court for consideration. It was held by this Court that the words "all varieties of cotton, woollen or silken textiles. in Item 30 of Schedule B to the Punjab General Sales Tax Act must be interpreted according to its popular sense, meaning "that sense which people conversant with the subject matter with which the statute is dealing would attribute to it." This Court fur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tton-belting as falling within Item No. 4 of the Third Schedule of the said Act. This Item No. 4 reads as follows :- "All varieties of textiles (other than durries carpets, druggets and pure silk cloth) made wholly or partly of cotton, staple fibre, rayon, artificial silk or wool including handkerchiefs, towels, napkins, dusters, cotton velvets and velvetten, tapes, niwars and laces and hosiery cloth in lengths." 11. It was held that textiles having a wider meaning than fabrics cotton-belting and hair-belting were included in the expression cotton fabrics and as such they are exempted from taxation falling within Item No. 4 of the Third Schedule as it stood prior to its amendment. 12. It is pertinent to mention in this connection that in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... general exemption granted by the notification issued in 1957 and 1958 exempting 'cotton fabrics of all kind', it is not possible to hold in any view of the matter that it will be excisable to sales tax on the basis of the Notification dated 1-12-1973 under Section 3A of the said Act, by the Government. 14. The next question for consideration is what is the effect of a notification under Section 3A including an item in the Schedule for imposition of sales tax though there is a general exemption from sales tax under Section 4 of the Sales Tax Act. It has been held in the case of Commissioner of Sales Tax v. M/s. Dayal Singh Kulfi Wala, Lucknow = 1980 U.P.T.C. 360 as follows :- "A fiscal statute like the one before me has to be inte ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , Gorakhpur [1981 U.P.T.C. 1239] and it was held that so long as the general exemption under Section 4 continues a particular item notified under Section 3A of the Sales Tax Act cannot be taxed. 16. On a conspectus of all these decisions aforesaid, the only irrestible inference follows that so long as the general exemption granted under Section 4 with regard to cotton fabrics of all kinds continues no sales tax can be imposed on beltings of all kinds which fall within the cotton fabrics of all kinds and the general exemption under Section 4 will prevail over the notification made under Section 3A of the Sales Tax Act. I am unable to subscribe to the view that since the Notification under Section 3A of the U.P. Sales Tax Act has been made s ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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