( 1 ) THESE five T. R. Cs are disposed of by a common judgment as the question of law involved is one and the same.

( 2 ) THE petitioners in all these cases is M/s. M. M. T. C. (India) Ltd. , Visakhapatnam which is a Government of India undertaking. For the sake of convenience, we are referring to the facts in T. R. C. No. 43 of 1991 as the facts are exactly similar in the other connected cases also T. R. C. No. 43of 1991 the assessment year is 1984-85. T. R. C. No. 92 of 1995 the assessment year is 1983-84. T. R-C. No. 112 of 1995 the assessment year is 1982-83. T. R,c. No. 40 of 1995 the assessment year 1987-88. T. R. C. No. 12 of 1995 the assessment year is 1983-84.

( 3 ) FOR the assessment year 1984-85 the assessee claimed exemption on a turnover of Rs. 16,09, 11,777. 30 and Rs. 17,29,74,326. 42 as the sales in the course of import of sulphur and rock phosphate falls under the 2nd limb of Section 5 (2) of the CST Act (herein after referred to as the Act ). The plea of the petitioner is that it has imported goods from foreign parties and as it has transferred the bills of lading in favour of the local buyers before the customs clearance of goods was effected, they are sales in the course of import under second limb of Section 5 (2) read with Section 2 (ab) of the Act which defines crossing the customs frontiers of India as "crossing limits of customs station in which the imported goods or exported goods are ordinarily kept before clearance by customs authorities". The Commercial Tax Officer disallowed the exemption holding that the crucial date for the purpose of determining the exemption is the date of arrival of the vessel and even in the cases where date of arrival of the vessel is subsequent to the date of transfer of documents, he rejected the plea on the ground that the original statement of facts issued by the Master of the ship was not filed. The petitioner filed before the authorities below the certificates issued by the customs authorities indicating the time of customs clearance in respect of most of the shipments. The Commercial Tax Officer has disallowed the exemption on some shipments on the ground that time was not recorded on the copies of the letters from the customs acknowledging the bill of lading. On an appeal the Appellate Deputy Commissioner took the date of "arrival of the vessel at the port" as relevant. The Appellate Deputy Commissioner disallowed the exemption on the ground that the bill of lading have been tansferred subsequent to the date of arrival of the vessel at the roads ignoring the date of effecting the customs clearance of the goods. On a further appeal the Tribunal held that it is enough if the goods cross the outer limit of the customs clearance and it is not necessary that it has to cross the inner limit also. Aggrieved by the same present T. R. C. is filed.

( 4 ) FROM the facts narrated as above it is clear that the petitioners have imported the goods. According to the petitioner the goods were transferred by transferring the bills of lading in favour of the respective purchasers and that since the transfer was effected before the clearance of the goods, the provisions of the A. P. G. S. T. are not applicable by virtue of Section. 38 of the Act as it is a sale occasioned in the course of the import of goods into the territory of India, by transfer of documents of title before the goods are crossed the customs frontiers of India. On the other hand the case of the Revenue is that since the transfer was effected after the goods are crossed the limits of the area of the customs authorities in which the imported goods and exported goods are ordinarily kept before clearance by the customs authorities, the transaction falls outside Section 5 (2) read with Section 2 (a) (b) of the CST.

( 5 ) ON the facts and circumstances of the case the question that arises for consideration is the interpretation of Section 5 (2), read with Section 2 (ab) of CST. In order to consider the ab