The short question that arises for consideration in these cases is as to whether the hire-charges received by the assessee in respect of the excavator owned by it and used for excavating clay mine of M/s. Sulekha Clay Mines is liable to be assessed under S.5(1)(iii) of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, for short, "the Act".

2. All these tax revision cases arise from the common order of the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal, Thiruvananthapuram, passed in T.A. Nos. 4,5 and 6 of 2001 filed by the assessee under the Act. Assessee is the revision-petitioner. State of Kerala is the respondent. The assessment years concerned are 1995-96,1996-97 and 1997-98, respectively.

3. During the three assessment years concerned, the assessee had received Rs. 2,88,580, 9,06,280 and 5,61,272 respectively towards lease charges of the excavator from M/s. Sulekha Clay Mines. The assessments of the petitioner for the years 1995-96 and 1996-97 were originally completed wherein the lease charges mentioned above were not included. The assessing authority therefore, initiated proceedings under S.19 of the Act in respect of those two years. The assessment year 1997-98 was pending before the assessin