X QUIZ IT Vs. STATE OF TAMIL NADU

JUDGEMENT

(1.) RAMANUJAM, J In these tax revision cases filed by the assessees the only question that arises for consideration is whether pile carpets will fall under item 4 of the Third Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959.

(2.) THE assessees were assessed for the year 1974-75 under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, hereinafter referred to as the State Act as well as under the Central Sales Tax Act. In the course of the assessment under the Central Sales Tax Act, the assessees disputed their liability on a turnover of Rs. 27, 143 relating to the inter-state sales of pile carpets. In the course of the assessment under the State Act the assessees disputed the turnover of Rs. 1, 08, 668.44 relating to sales of pile carpets. THE assessing authority brought the said two items of disputed turnover to tax treating them as sales turnover of pile carpets. Appeals against the said assessments to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner having failed, the matter was taken on appeal to the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal.

(3.) ITEM 4 of the Third Schedule takes in cotton fabrics, woollen fabrics and rayon or artificial silk fabrics, as defined in items 19, 21 and 22 respectively of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944. Woollen fabrics mentioned in section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act and in item 4 of the Third Schedule to the State Act refers to the definition in item 21 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act as the Central Excise Department is levying duty on the manufacturers of woollen fabrics. Therefore the carpets manufactured by the assessee should be taken to fall under woollen fabrics mentioned in the Central Sales Tax Act or in the State Act. According to the assessee the same article cannot be classified differently by the Central Excise Department in respect of the manufacturers and by the Commercial Taxes Department in respect of distributors. The learned counsel for the assessee also drew our attention to the decision of this Court inNarasimha Agencyv.State of Tamil Nadu where collar stiffening material was held to come under cotton fabrics and claimed that on the same analogy woollen carpets sold by the assessee would also be taken to fall under woollen fabrics. The learned counsel for the Revenue contended that the articles sold by the assessee were only pile carpets and in the purchase invoices the description of the carpets is 'super-cut-pile", and that though the manufacturers of the pile carpets were levied excise duty under item 21 of the First Schedule to the Central Excises and Salt Act, they have challenged the levy on the ground that they are not woollen fabrics and the assessee who is only a distributor cannot take up the stand different from the manufacturers.