COMMISSIONER OF SALES TAX Vs. SATHE BISCUITS AND CHOCOLATE CO LTD

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a consolidated Reference made at the instance of the Commissioner of Sales Tax under section 61(1) of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959, in respect of four assessment period viz. January 1, 1960 to March 31, 1960, April 1, 1960 to March 31, 1961, April 1, 1961 to March 31, 1962 and April 1, 1962 to March 31, 1963.

(2.) This Reference also deals with the amount of set-off to be given to a dealer in respect of the tax paid by him or collected from him on purchase of raw materials which have gone into the manufacture or taxable goods for sale or as packing materials and containers for such manufactured goods which have been despatched by the manufacturing dealer to his branches outside the State but within India and sold by such branches complying with the conditions prescribed in that behalf. The set-off to which the respondents were entitled was under the Explanation to R. 41 of the Bombay Sales Tax Rules, 1959 during the period January 1, 1960 to July 15, 1962 and under Rule 41A of the said Rules during the period July 16, 1962 to March 31, 1963.

(3.) In Sales Tax Reference No. 20 of 1972, The Commissioner of Sales Tax vs. M/S. Jai Hind Mills Co., 1976 CTR (Bom.) 432, which we have decided today, we have determined an identical question arising under Rule 41. The material provisions of Rule 41A are similar to the provisions of Rule 41, which we have considered in that case. Though there are variations between the relevant provisions of Rule 41A of the Bombay Sales Tax Rules, 1959, both sides are agreed that these variations make no difference to the question to be determined by us, and our decision on S.T. Ref. No. 20 of 1972 would also govern this case. We, however, find that in this case also, the question has not been properly framed and we accordingly reframed the question submitted to us into two questions :