( 1 ) IN respect of the assessment year 1986-1987 the following two turnovers : 1. Inter-State sale of hybrid jawar seed. . . Rs. 18,728 at 4%not covered by declaration in form C.

( 2 ) INTER-STATE sales of cotton-seed not. . . Rs. 72,376 at 8%covered by "c" declarations. were brought to tax under the Central Sales Tax, 1956 (for short "the CST Act") by the assessing officer rejecting the contention of the assessee that under section 8 (2-A) of the CST Act, it is entitled to exemption. The case of the assessee was that by virtue of G. O. Ms. No. 604, Revenue (S), dated April 9, 1981, when once exemption was granted in respect of the above turnovers under the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 (for short, "the APGST Act") the assessing officer had no power to hold that the dealer was not entitled to exemption under section 8 (2-A) of the CST Act. The assessing officer was of the opinion that G. O. Ms. No. 604, Revenue (S), dated April 9, 1981 is not of a general nature but a conditional one and, therefore, although under the APGST Act the turnovers in question were eligible for exemption, the same advantage the assessee could not get under the CST Act. The first appellate authority affirmed that view. On appeal, the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal following its earlier view in Pinakini Seeds v. State of Andhra Pradesh (1988) 6 APSTJ 140 dismissed the appeal. Aggrieved by that the present tax revision case was filed by the petitioner. 2. G. O. Ms. 604, Revenue (S), dated April 9, 1981 is in the following terms :"in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 9 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 (Andhra Pradesh Act VI of 1957), the Governor of Andhra Pradesh hereby exempts from the tax payable under the said Act the sales or purchases of all varieties of certified and truthfully labelled seeds for agricultural purposes. "

( 3 ) GOVERNMENT subsequently issued a clarification in Memo No. 13630/ct-II-2/89-19, Rev. (CT-II) Department dated April 26, 1994, the operative portion of which reads : "the Government have examined the matter in consultation with the Agricultural and Co-operative Department and they hereby clarify that both certified seeds and truthfully labelled seeds are exempt from tax as per the order issued in G. O. Ms. No. 604, Revenue (S) Department dated April 9, 1981 and G. O. Ms. No. 129, Rev. (CT-II) Department dated February 14, 1989 as they are two types of seeds sold for agricultural purposes. "

( 4 ) G. O. MS. No. 129, (C. T.- III) Revenue dated February 14, 1989 reads :"in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (5) of section 8 of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (Central Act No. 74 of 1956), the Governor of Andhra Pradesh hereby exempts from payment of tax under the said Act on the sales of all varieties of certified and truthfully labelled seeds for agricultural purposes in the course of inter-State trade or commerce with effect from the 15th February, 1989. "

( 5 ) THE judgment of the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal in Pinakini Seeds case (1988) 6 APSTJ 140 was reserved by a Division Bench of this Court in Pinakini Seeds v. State of Andhra Pradesh [1995] 98 STC 144. Interpreting G. O. Ms. No. 604, the Division Bench held :"as stated above, certified and truthfully labelled seeds are seeds which have been so classified under the seeds Act . Therefore, the requirements of the G. O. , are only indicative of the nature of the goods which are entitled to exemption and do not specify any circumstance or condition under which the seeds are entitled to exemption. The submission that the expression for agricultural purposes specifies the circumstance or the condition subject to which the exemption is available cannot be accepted for the simple reason that that expression qualifies the term seeds but does not specify a condition or a circumstance. "

( 6 ) ON that view, the Division Bench concluded that G. O. Ms. No. 604 is a general exemption and as such th