Broad definition of tobacco under exemption notification covered hand-made biris and kept their sale tax-free.

Hand-made biris fell within the exemption for "tobacco" under the Bihar Sales Tax Act notification because the notification incorporated the wider statutory definition of tobacco from the excise enactments. That definition covered any form of tobacco, whether cured or uncured and whether manufactured or not, and the later amendment concerning machine-made biris did not narrow the scope for this notification. On that construction, the sale of hand-made biris remained exempt from sales tax for the relevant period.

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Issues: Whether hand-made biris fell within the expression "tobacco" in the exemption notification issued under section 7 of the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1947, so as to exempt their sale from sales tax for the relevant period.

Analysis: The notification exempted dealers selling tobacco as defined in the Additional Duties of Excise (Levy & Distribution) Act, 1957 read with the Provisional Collection of Taxes Act, 1931. That Act adopted the meaning of "tobacco" from item 9 of the First Schedule to the Central Excise and Salt Act, 1944, which defined tobacco in wide terms as any form of tobacco, whether cured or uncured and whether manufactured or not. The later amendment dealing with biris manufactured with machines did not restrict the scope of that definition for the purpose of the Bihar notification. On the language of the notification and the incorporated definition, there was no basis to cut down the breadth of the word "tobacco".

Conclusion: Hand-made biris were covered by the exemption and no sales tax was payable on their sale for the relevant period.

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