RAMAMURTHI AND BROS Vs. COLLECTOR EAST GODAVAFY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THESE two Second Appeals arise out of two suits O. S. No. 214 of 1949 and O. S. No. 81 of 1950 on the file of the Court of the District Munsif, Amalapuram. Though both the suits were tried separately, at the appellate stage both the appeals filed against separate judgments of the first court, were heard together by consent of parties and one judgment was delivered. Perhaps for that reason, the learned Judge did not give specific findings in the two appeals separately. As the findings are not clear, I found some difficulty in disposing of these appeals. The two suits were filed against the Province of Madras by two merchants. Ramamurthi & Brothers filed O. S. No. 214 of 1949 for a declaration that the assessment of Sales Tax on their turnover of Rs. 1,67,877-9-3 was illegal. Bonthu Swami Company filed O. S. No. 81 of 1950 for a similar declaration that the assessment on their turnover of Rs. 2,91,736-8-6 was illegal. They alleged that their respective turnovers related to transactions that took place outside the Province of Madras, and therefore they were not liable to Sales tax in the Province of Madras. In O. S. No. 214 of 1949, the District Munsif held that the sales had been effected in the Province of Madras and, therefore, the imposition of Sales Tax was valid. In O. S. No. 81 of 1950, the same District Munsif held that the sales, the subject-matter of that suit, were effected outside the Province of Madras and, therefore, the imposition of sales tax was invalid. On appeal, the learned Subordinate Judge held that the sales in both the suits were effected in the Province of Madras. On that finding, he dismissed both the suits. Hence, the appeals. The learned Subordinatejudge described the nature of the transactions as follows in para 9 of his judgment.