Statutory definition controls "registered dealer" under Bombay Sales Tax Act, limiting deduction to dealers registered under the State Act.

The expression "registered dealer" in section 8(ii) of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 is confined to a dealer registered under section 22 of that Act because the statutory definition in section 2(25) applies throughout the Act unless the context requires otherwise. Section 8(ii) contains no contextual indication for a wider meaning, and its deduction scheme is directed to purchases from dealers registered under the Bombay Act to preserve single-point taxation within the State. The limited deeming fiction in section 4 for dealers registered under the Central Sales Tax Act applies only to the provisions expressly named and cannot enlarge the defined term in section 8(ii).

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Issues: Whether the expression "registered dealer" in section 8(ii) of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 includes a dealer registered only under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, or is confined to a dealer registered under section 22 of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959.

Analysis: The term "registered dealer" is defined in section 2(25) as a dealer registered under section 22, and that definition governs the body of the Act unless the context repels it. Section 8(ii) contains no contextual indication requiring a wider meaning. The scheme of section 8(ii) is to allow deduction only where the goods were purchased from a dealer registered under the Bombay Act, so that the statutory scheme of single-point taxation within the State is preserved. Section 4, which creates a limited deeming fiction for dealers registered under the Central Act for specified machinery provisions, operates in a different field and cannot be projected into section 8(ii). The fiction is restricted to the sections expressly mentioned and cannot enlarge the meaning of the defined term in another provision.

Conclusion: The expression "registered dealer" in section 8(ii) does not include a dealer registered only under the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, and the claim for deduction was not available. The answer is in favour of the revenue and against the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: A statutory definition governs the use of the defined expression throughout the enactment unless the context clearly requires otherwise, and a deeming provision created for a limited purpose cannot be extended to enlarge that definition in another section.

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