JAYANARAYAN RAMANANDLAL Vs. STATE OF ORISSA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these two references at the instance of the dealer under section 24 (1) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act, 1947 (for short "the Act"), the Member, Additional Sales Tax Tribunal, Orissa, has made a statement of the case on the following questions of law :

(2.) THE dealer registered under the Act filed returns for the years 1973-74 and 1974-75, on the basis that sarees fitted with chumki and embroidery and bed-sheets fitted with jhallar are essentially mill-made cloths which are tax-free as mentioned in entry No. 33 of the notification of the State Government under section 6 of the Act. This claim was not accepted by the assessing officer who assessed those goods as "embroidery" provided in entry No. 43 of the notification under section 5 (1) of the Act.

(3.) THERE is no dispute that sarees without being fitted with chumki and embroidery and bed-sheets without being fitted with jhallar would be mill-made cloths which would be tax-free within the ambit of entry No. 33 of the notification under section 6 of the Act. The short question would be whether by addition of chumki and/or embroidery to the sarees and jhallar on the bed-sheets, the character of the commodities changes to make the same taxable.