- (1.) The respondents are dealers in eggs. They purchase eggs in the State of Kerala and sell them to merchants outside the State. Under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, tax is chargeable on sale of eggs only at the last point of purchase in the State. For the assessment year 1962-63 the Sales Tax Officer assessed the respondents to tax on their turnover in inter-State sales. He held that the sale of eggs being taxable under the State Act, the respondents were liable to pay tax on transactions of sale in the course of inter-State trade under the central Sales Tax Act, 1956. Appeals by the respondents to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner and to the Sales Tax tribunal were unsuccessful. The respondents then moved the High court of Kerala in a "tax revision". The High court, following the judgment of this court in the State of Mysore v. Yaddalam Lakshminarasimhiah Setty and Sons , reversed the order passed by the Sales Tax tribunal and discharged the order of assessment of the turnover arising out of sale of eggs in the course of inter-State trade. With special leave, the State of Kerala has appealed against the orders passed by the High court.
(2.) Counsel for the State contended that the decision of this court in Yaddalam Lakshminarasimhiah Setty's case proceeds upon the interpretation of section 8, Ss. (2) , as it stood before it was amended by Act 31 of 1958 and cannot be regarded as an authority for the true interpretation of section 8 as it stood in the year of assessment after the enactment of the central Sales Tax Act by the central Sales Tax (Second Amendment) Act, 1958 (31 of 1958) , which came into force in October, 1958. It is not necessary to express our opinion on the contention raised by counsel for the State because the President of India has promulgated on 9/06/1969, the central Sales Tax (Amendment) Ordinance, 1969 (4 of 1969) , which dispenses with the necessity to consider the validity of the argument. By section 2 of the Ordinance it is provided : "During the period of operation of this Ordinance, the central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act) shall have effect subject to the amendments specified in S. 3,4,5,6,7 and 8. "section 3 provides: "In section 2 of the principal Act, in clause (j) , for the words 'and determined in the prescribed manner', the words 'and determined in accordance with the provisions of this Act and the rules made thereunder' shall be, and shall be deemed always to have been, substituted. "
(3.) The effect of the amendment is that the turnover for the purpose of the central Sales Tax Act has to be determined in accordance with the provisions of the Act and the Rules made thereunder. This provision has retrospective operation as from the date on which the principal Act was enacted. Section 4 provides: "in section 6 of the principal Act, after Ss. (1) , the following Ss. shall be, and shall be deemed always to have been, inserted, namely:' (! A) A dealer shall be liable to pay tax under this Act on a sale of any goods effected by him in the course of inter-State trade or commerce notwithstanding that no tax would have been leviable (whether on the seller or purchaser) under the sales tax law of the appropriate State if that sale had taken place inside that State. ' " This section has also retrospective operation, Section 6 provides: "for section 9 of the principal Act, the following section shall be and shall be deemed always to have been, substituted, namely :-;