The term "wheat" in clause (i)(iii) of section 14 of the CST Act does not include flour and fine-flour (atta, maida and suji).

M. B. SHARMA, J. - In the above numbered writ petitions an identical question is involved and therefore, all the above writ petitions are being disposed of by this common order.

2. The petitioner in each of the above writ petitions purchases wheat from outside State as well as from within the State of Rajasthan for crushing it into flour and fine-flour, i.e., maida and suji and sells it to the traders within and without the State.

3. Clause 3 of article 286 of the Constitution lays down that any law of a State shall in so far as it imposes or authorises the imposition of a tax on the sale or purchase of goods declared by Parliament by law to be of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce, or a tax on the sale or purchase of goods being a tax of the nature referred to in sub-clause (b) or sub-clause (c) or sub-clause (d) of clause (29A) of article 366, be subject to such restrictions and conditions in regard to the system of levy, rates and other incidents of the tax as Parliament may by law specify. In view of the aforesaid constitutional mandate provisions were made in the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (for short, "the CST Act"). Section 2(c) of the CST Act defines "declared goods" and the said term means goods declared under section 14 to be of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce. Section 14 of the CST Act declares certain goods to be of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce, and for the convenience these goods have come to be known as "declared goods". A conjoint reading of sections 14 and 15 of the CST Act will show that so far as declaration of goods under section 14 is concerned, the sales tax law of the State shall impose or authorise imposition of tax not exceeding 4 per cent of the sale or purchase price thereof and such tax shall not be levied at more than one stage. So far as clause (i) of section 14 of the CST Act is concerned, it reads as under :

"Section 14 : Certain goods to be of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce. - It is hereby declared that the following goods are of special importance in inter-State trade or commerce -

(i) cereals, that is to say -

(i) paddy (Oryza sativa L.);

(ii) rice (Oryza sativa L.);

(iii) wheat (Triticum vulgare, T. compactum, T. sphaerococcum, T. durum, T. aestivum L., T. dicoccum);

(iv) jowar or milo (Sorghum vulgare Pers);

(v) bajra (Pennisetum typhoideum L.);

(vi) maize (Zea mays D.);

(vii) ragi (Eleusine coracana Gaertn.);

(viii) kodon (paspalum scrobiculatum L.);

(ix) kutki (panicum miliare L.);

(x) barley (Hordeum vulgare L.);"

It will therefore appear from the aforesaid extracted clause (i) that "wheat" is declared goods.

4. In the seventies wheat was exempted from payment of sales tax by various notifications issued under section 4(2) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act, 1954 (for short, "the RST Act"). Under the various notifications the State Government in exercise of the powers conferred by proviso ii to section 5 of the RST Act prescribed the rates of sales tax payable by a dealer in respect of goods including flour, fine-flour, i.e., maida, and suji and a reference may be made to the following notifications in this respect -

Notification number and date Rate of tax

1. F.5.(23)E&T/61-I dated March 9, 1961 1%

2. 5(A) : F.5(40)FD(R&T)/63 XIII dated March 2, 1963 2%

3. S. No. 94 : F.5(125)FD(CT)/65-IV dated November 2, 1965 1%

4. S. No. 248 : F.5(24)FD/CT/72-8 dated April 26, 1972 1%

5. F.4(67)FD/Gr.IV/76-23 dated September 8, 1976 3%

6. F.4(5)FD/Gr.IV/88-13 dated March 8, 1988 :

for paddy, rice and wheat 4%

for maida, suji and sewaiyan 5%

7. F.4(4)FD/Gr.IV/89-12 dated March 23, 1989 4%

5. The case of the petitioners is that in the pa