N M GOEL AND CO Vs. SALES TAX OFFICER RAJNANDGAON

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This appeal by special leave is from the judgment and order of the Full Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, dated 8th December, 1986.

(2.) The writ petition in question out of which this judgment arose had been referred to the Full Bench by the Division Bench on the question whether the petitioner-appellant could be said to have effected entry of the goods in the local area and thereby made it liable for payment of entry tax under S. 3 of the M.P. Sthaniya Kshetra Me Mal Ke Pravesh Par Kar Adhiniyam, 1976 (hereinafter called 'the Act'). There was conflict between the Division Benches of the Madhya Pradesh High Court and as a result the matter was referred to the Full Bench. In order to appreciate the controversy and the question, it is necessary to state a few facts.

(3.) The appellant-company is a building contractor at Rajnandgaon in Madhya Pradesh and is registered as a dealer under the Madhya Pradesh General Sales Tax Act. The appellant's tender for construction of foodgrains godown and ancillary buildings at Rajnandgaon was accepted by the Central Public Works Department. It was an item rate tender. In the tender so submitted by the appellant, the prices of the materials to be used for the construction including cost of iron, steel and cement were included. The PWD, however, had agreed to supply from its stores the said iron, steel and cement for the construction work and to deduct the prices of materials so supplied and consumed in the construction from the final bill of the appellant. Clause (10) of the contract is relevant and was as follows: