Judgement

SHAH, J. : M/s. Raipur Manufacturing Company-hereinafter called the Company - carries on the business of manufacturing and selling cotton textiles. In the account year 1953-54 the Company beside selling cloth sold coal and 25 different items of discarded or unserviceable goods and waste products from the factory. The goods sold may be classified under three heads :

"(1) Old containers-cans, boxes, etc.; discarded stores, machinery and iron scrap; miscellaneous discarded items, such as, cotton ropes, chindis (rags), etc.

(2) Kolsi (cinders), waste caustic liquor.

(3) Coal."

The Sales tax authorities brought the turnover from sales of those commodities to tax under the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1953 and their order was confirmed in appeal by the Sales Tax Tribunal. The Tribunal was of the view that "a cotton textile mill manages to collect unserviceable articles in the course of manufacture of cloth" and since these articles have to be sold, if it is to survive as an economic unit, sales of those articles must be regarded "as part of the business of the textile mill" if the transactions of sale are large and frequent. The Tribunal did not deal with the sale of coal independently o