GURUVIAH NAIDU AND CO IN RE Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN Cr.R.C. Nos. 88 and 89 of 1953, the accused have been convicted under Section 15(b) of the Madras General Sales Tax Act and each of them has been sentenced to pay a fine of Rs. 25, in default to undergo simple imprisonment for fifteen days. The sales tax amounts of Rs. 3,125-4-0 and Rs. 4,000-6-6 respectively have been directed to be recovered from them as if they were fines. IN Cr.R.C. Nos. 90 and 91 of 1953, the accused have been convicted under the same section and each of them sentenced to pay a fine of Rs. 75, in default to undergo simple imprisonment for fifteen days. IN addition, the sales tax amounts due, viz., Rs. 3,577-6-0 and Rs. 1,522-7-3 respectively, have been directed to be recovered from them as if they were fines. The facts in each of these cases are the same and accordingly the order of the learned Magistrate in each of these cases is also, in substance, the same. The witnesses examined for the prosecution are also the same and the defence raised before the learned Magistrate in each of the cases was also the same. These revision cases against the said orders of the learned Magistrate have been posted together before this Bench for being dealt with in a batch for the reason that they raise common grounds on which the accused seek to set aside the orders of the learned Magistrate.

(2.) THE accused are merchants dealing in hides and skins in Salem. THEir business consists in the purchase of skins and hides and exporting the same to foreign countries. In Cr.R.C. No. 88 of 1953, the accused were called upon to pay sales tax in the sum of Rs. 3,126-4-0 which represented the balance payable out of the sum of Rs. 5,519-13-0 to which the accused were assessed for the year 1950-51. This assessment is said to have been made on the purchases of skins made by the accused in pursuance of orders placed with them by the foreign companies for the supply of the same. In Cr.R.C. No. 89 of 1953, the same accused as in Cr.R.C. No. 88 of 1953, were assessed to sales tax for the months of April to September, 1951, by the Assistant Commercial Tax Officer, Salem, in the total sum of Rs. 4,000-6-6 said to be due from the company on the skins purchased by them. In Cr.R.C. No. 90 of 1953, there has been a provisional assessment against the accused for the months of May to September, 1951, in respect of sales tax due for the skins purchased by them. Similarly in Cr.R.C. No. 91 of 1953, the accused was assessed by the Assistant Commercial Tax Officer, Salem Town, to an aggregate sum of Rs. 2,652-5-9 for the year 1950-51. THE prosecution in this case is in respect of the sum of Rs. 1,522-7-3 representing the balance of the assessment due and payable by the accused.

(3.) SUB-section (6) says that subject to such rules as may be prescribed; the assessing authority may assess a dealer for any year as if his transactions in such year had been the same as in the previous year. That this section is the charging section is common ground between the parties. The 'turnover' on which the sales tax is to be levied has been defined in Section 2(i) of the Act. It is in the following terms :- "'Turnover' means the aggregated amount for which goods are either bought by or sold by a dealer, whether for cash or for deferred payment or other valuable consideration provided that the proceeds of the sale by a person of agricultural or horticultural produce grown by himself or grown on any land in which he has an interest. Whether as owner, usufructuary mortgagee, tenant or otherwise, shall be excluded from his turnover."