Gujarat High Court
J. M. SHELAT,P. N. BHAGWATI
Vishwa and Co., - Appellant
Versus
State of Gujarat - Respondent
Sales Tax Ref. No. 10 of 1965
Decided On : 10/14/1965
Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1953 - Section 2, 4, 5 ,16(4) and 34(1) - Mysore Sales Tax Act, 1957 - Section 13 - Rule 18 - Claimed to recover penalty – Challenged – Claim - Sales Tax Officer - Two questions of law are submitted for our opinion in this reference; one raises the issue as to which is the proper entry of Schedule B to the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1953 under which fans are liable to be taxed, entry 52 or the residuary entry 80 and the other relates to the validity of the imposition of penalty on the assessee under S. 16(4) of the Act. In order to appreciate the contentions bearing on these questions, it is necessary to state briefly a few facts giving rise to the reference – Held, where construing a similar provision made in Section 13 of the Mysore Sales Tax Act, 1957 read with the second proviso to Rule 18 of the Rules made under that Act, the Mysore High Court took the view that in the case of tax due according to the return filed by the assessee, the assessee could be said to have committed default in making payment of the amount of tax within the prescribed time only if the assessee failed to comply with the notice issued under the second proviso to Rule 18 and nonpayment of the amount of tax before filing of the return did not attract the applicability of the penal provision contained – order accordimgly
BHAGWATI, J. :- Two questions of law are submitted for our opinion in this reference; one raises the issue as to which is the proper entry of Schedule B to the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1953 under which fans are liable to be taxed, entry 52 or the residuary entry 80 and the other relates to the validity of the imposition of penalty on the assessee under S. 16(4) of the Act. In order to appreciate the contentions bearing on these questions, it is necessary to state briefly a few facts giving rise to the reference.
2. At all material times the assessee was a registered dealer under the provisions of the Act and carried on business as a dealer in electric fans and sewing machines. In the course of the assessment of the assessee to sales tax for the assessment period 1st April 1957 to 31st March 1958, the question arose whether the sales of electric fans made by the assessee were taxable under Entry 52 of Sch. B or under Entry 80 of Schedule B. The revenue claimed that electric fans were domestic electrical appliances within the meaning of Entry 52 of Schedule B and the sales of electric fans were, therefore, taxable under that entry whereas the assessee contended that electric fans were not eletrical appliances and that, in any event, even if they were electrical appliances, they were not domestic electrical appliances since their essential or primary use was not for homes or houses but they were meant for use also in offices and commercial and industrial establishments and they were, therefore, not covered by Entry 52 of Schedule B and since there was no other specific entry covering them, they fell within the residuary entry 80 or Schedule B. The contention of the assessee was rejected and the claim of the revenue to tax the sales under Entry 52 of Schedule B was upheld by all the appellate and revisional authorities and the Tribunal also took the same view. The Tribunal held that in the context in which the words "domestic electrical appliances" occurred in Entry 52 of Schedule B and on a consideration of corresponding entries in the previous sales tax statutes, it was clear that these words had an enlarged meaning which included electric fans and electric fans were, therefore, covered by Entry 52 of Schedule B. This decision of the Tribunal is now challenged before us on the present reference under question No. 1. So far as question No. 2 is concerned, the facts are very simple. The assessee was admittedly liable to submit quarterly returns under R. 4 of the Bombay Sales Tax (Procedure) Rules, 1954, and the assessee accordingly submitted a return for the quarter ending 30th June 1957 on or about 6th August 1957. The tax due according to the return was Rs. 33,221.09 nP. And under S. 16(2) and Rule 10 it was required to be paid into Government Treasury before furnishing the return. But the assessee paid only Rs. 10,000 before submitting the return and the balance was paid later on or about 8th May 1958 after the return was submitted. The Sales Tax Officer, therefore, held that the assessee had rendered itself liable to penalty under S. 16(4) and he accordingly claimed to recover penalty from the assessee. The assessee challenged the claim of the Sales Tax Officer and the contention of the assessee was that on a proper construction of the provisions enacted in S. 16, no liability to payment of penalty was incurred under subsection (4) by reason of non-payment of the amount of the tax before the filing of the return and that such liability could arise only if the assessee failed to pay the amount of the tax within the time limited under the notice issued under sub-section (5) and since no such notice was issued to the assessee, the assessee was not liable to pay any penalty. This contention was, however, rejected by all the appellate and revisional authorities including the Tribunal and the imposition of the penalty was held valid. Question No. 2 challenges the correctness of the decision of the Tribunal on this point.
3. The
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