Full Judgment Text
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PETITIONER:
SARIN CHEMICAL LABORATORY
Vs.
RESPONDENT:
COMMISSIONER OF SALES TAX, U.P.
DATE OF JUDGMENT:
07/08/1970
BENCH:
HEGDE, K.S.
BENCH:
HEGDE, K.S.
SHAH, J.C.
CITATION:
1971 AIR 65 1971 SCR (1) 731
1970 SCC (2) 403
CITATOR INFO :
E 1973 SC 78 (5)
F 1973 SC 960 (5,6)
ACT:
U.P. Sales-Tax Act U.P. Act of 1948 S. 3 and 3-A-Tooth
Powder-If liable to tax as toilet or as unspecified
commodity.
HEADNOTE:
On the question whether tooth powder manufactured by the
assessees was "cosmetic" or a "toilet requisite" liable to
tax under s. 3(A) of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, read with Entry
6 of Notification No. 905/X dated March 31, 1956/or whether
it is an unspecified commodity liable to tax under section 3
of the Act,
HELD :-Tooth powder is a toilet and therefore taxable under
s. 3(A) of the U.P. Sales Tax Act, read with the
Notification.
Neither the expression ’cosmetic, nor ’toilet requisite’ has
been defined under the Act. The names of articles, the
sales and purchases of which are liable to be taxed given in
a statute, unless defined in the statute, must be construed
not in a technical sense but as understood in a common
parlance. In common parlance a tooth -powder is considered
as a toilet and that meaning accords with the dictionary
meaning as well. [732 E, H]
Bamavater Budhaiprasad v. The Asstt. Sales Tax Officer,
Akola and Another, 12, S.T.C. 286, followed.
V. P. Sanasundara Mudaliar v. State of Madras 14, S.T.C.
943; Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Vicco Laboratories, 22
S.T.C. 169, approved.
JUDGMENT:
CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeals Nos. 262 to 265
of 1970.
Appeals by-special leave from the judgment and order dated
May 1, 1969 of the Allahabad High Court in Sales Tax
Reference Nos. 249, 250, 251 and 571 of 1966 and Civil
Appeals Nos. 266 and 267 of 1970.
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Appeals by special leave from the judgment and order dated
January 29, 1969 of the Allahabad High Court in Sales Tax
Reference Nos. 604 and 603 of 1965.
H. R. Gokhale, Gobind Das, D. N. Mishra and B. P. Singh, for
the appellant (in all the appeals).
C. B. Agarwala and 0. -P. Rana, for the respondent (in all
the appeals).
732
The Judgment of the Court was delivered by
Hegde, J. These are connected appeals by special leave. The
only question raised in these appeals is- whether ’Sarin
Tooth Powder’ manufactured by M/s. Sarin Chemicals
Laboratory is "cosmetic" or a "toilet requisite" as held by
the High Court of Allahabad or it is an unspecified
commodity liable to sales tax at all points of sale as held
by the Additional Judge (Revisions) Sales Tax, Agra.
The contention of M/s. Sarin Chemical Laboratory who is the
appellant in all the appeals is that the turn-over relating
to the sales of tooth powder is liable to be taxed at the
rate of 3 pies per rupee under s. 3 of the U.P. Sales Tax-
Act (to be hereinafter referred to as the Act) whereas
Commissioner of Sales Tax, U.P. contends that the said turn
over is liable to be taxed at single point under s. 3(A) of
that Act read with Entry 6 of the notification No. 905/X
dated March 31, 1956. The High Court has accepted the
contention of the Commissioner. In these appeals the
assessee challenges the conclusion reached by the High Court
and supports the view taken by the Additional Judge
(Revisions) Sales Tax, Agra, who held that the tooth powder
is an unspecified commodity liable to tax under s. 3 of the
Act.
Neither the expression ’cosmetic’ nor ’toilet requisite’ has
been defined in the Act. The dictionary meaning of the
expression ’cosmetic’ (see Webster’s international
Dictionary) is "A preparation to beautify or alter
appearance of the body or for cleansing, coloring,
conditioning or protecting skin, ’hair, nails, eyes or
teeth". The same dictionary gives the meaning of the
expression "toilet" thus : ’an act or process of dressing,
especially formerly of dressing hair and now usually
cleansing and grooming of one’s person". The word
"toiletry" is explained in the said dictionary as meaning
"an article -or preparation used in making one’s toilet such
as soap, lotion, cosmetic, tooth paste, shaving cream,
cologne etc.
According to the dictionary meaning tooth powder is regarded
both as an item of cosmetic and toilet: but as observed by
this Court in Bamavatar Budhaiprasad v. The Asstt. Sales
Tax Officer, Akola and another(1), the names of articles,
the sales and purchases of which are liable to be taxed
given in a statute unless defined in the statute must be
construed not in a technical sense but as understood in
common parlance. Therein this Court was called ’-upon to
consider whether ’betel leaves’ could be considered as
’vegetable’ under item No. 6 of Schedule II of the C. P.
Berar Sales Tax Act, 1947. In that case this Court observed
that the word ’vegetable’ had not been defined in the Act
and being a word of every day use,
(1) 12, S. T. C. 286;
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it must be construed in a popular sense, meaning "that sense
which people conversant with the, subject in matter with
which statute is dealing would attribute to it." Applying
that test this Court ruled that betel leaves cannot be
considered as ’vegetable’. In common parlance a tooth
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powder is considered as a toilet. That meaning ,accords
with the dictionary meaning, as well.
The question whether tooth powder can be considered as a
toilet came up before the Madras High Court in V. P.
Sanasundara Mudaliar v. State of Madras(’) and before the
Bombay High Court in Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Vicco
Laboratories(2). Both the courts took the view that the
tooth powder is a toilet. The same view has been taken by
the Allahabad High Court. We are in agreement with that
view
In the result these appeals fail and they are dismissed with
costs-hearing fee one set.
Y.P. Appeals dismissed.
(1) 14. S. T. C. 943.
(2) 22. S. T. C. 169.
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