JAGANMOHAN REDDY, C.J.

The main question in this batch of writ petitions and the tax revision case is whether the total turnover of a commission agent doing business for several principals is liable to be assessed to sales tax. We will take the facts in W.P. No. 562 of 1967 as typical of the common question arising in all the cases.

The petitioner carries on business of jaggery as a commission agent on behalf of the ryots, who bring jaggery to his premises at Tadepalligudem, by selling the jaggery on their behalf. The ryots pay a commission to the petitioner for the services rendered by him; and in addition they also pay other incidental expenses and customary charges like dharmam etc. It is the case of the petitioner that he was submitting monthly returns for purposes of sales tax under rule 17 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Rules (hereinafter called "the Rules") in Form A-2. Under rule 17(2) of the Rules the petitioner has to pay the taxes if any due as per the return. It is also the case of the petitioner that as none of the principals on whose behalf he was selling the jaggery has a taxable turnover of over Rs. 10,000, in his returns he was showing that no tax was payable for such of those principals whose turnover is below Rs. 10,000. For the year 1965-66, the assessing authority, ignoring the returns, made provisional assessments for some months; whereupon the petitioner filed W.P. No. 281 of 1966 for a writ of prohibition, which was admitted on 28th February, 1966. A stay of all further proceedings was also granted in that petition. It is stated that the assessing officer again issued a notice on 31st January, 1967, proposing to make provisional assessment for the months of April to December, 1966. In the show cause notice the assessing officer while admitting that the petitioner filed a statement giving all the particulars of the principals, he stated that the petitioner should file proper stamped affidavits to show that the principles had no other turnover.

It is contended before us firstly, that having regard to the provisions of section 11 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957 (hereinafter called "the Act") read with section 5, an agent of a resident principal can be held liable for the turnover of his principal if his principal has a taxable turnover of Rs. 10,000 or more and if he has a turnover of less than Rs. 10,000 he would not be liable. The Commercial Tax Officer was not justified in taking the turnover of all the principals on whose behalf the petitioner was selling jaggery and making him liable to tax; nor is he justified in calling upon him to file stamped affidavits of all the principals.

Sri Ramachandra Reddi, the learned Principal Government Pleader, on the other hand, contends for the extreme proposition that a commission agent who is a "dealer" as defined under section 2(1)(e)(iv) of the Act is liable for payment of tax on his turnover irrespective of the question whether he is an agent for one or several principals. According to him, the tax is on the agent's turnover and it is these transactions that are assessable under section 11.

In order to appreciate these rival contentions, it is necessary to examine the relevant provisions of the Act which are given below :

Section 2(1)(e) : "'Dealer' means any person who carries on the business of buying, selling, supplying or distributing goods, directly or otherwise, whether for cash, or for deferred payment, or for commission, remuneration or other valuable consideration, and includes -

(i) to (iii) * * *

(iv) a commission agent, a broker, a del credere agent, an auctioneer or any other mercantile agent, by whatever name called, who carries on the business of buying, selling, supplying or distributing goods on behalf of any principal.

Explanation I. - Every person who acts as an agent of a non-resident dealer, that is, as an agent on behalf of a dealer residing outside the State, and buys, sells