Declared goods retain their identity after processing, limiting State taxation of rolled iron and steel products.

Rolled iron and steel flats, sheets, bars and similar products made from scrap retained their character as iron and steel within the declared goods entry in section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act, because processing into a different form did not alter the essential identity of the commodity. Section 15 therefore continued to restrict State taxation of such declared goods to the prescribed rate and stage. The only factual issue left was whether the scrap had already suffered tax at the purchase stage; that question had to be examined by the assessing authority.

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Issues: Whether rolled iron and steel flats, sheets, bars and similar products made from iron and steel scrap already taxed at the purchase stage continue to fall within the declared goods entry for iron and steel, and whether they can be subjected to sales tax again under the State Act consistently with the Central Sales Tax Act.

Analysis: Section 14 of the Central Sales Tax Act treats iron and steel, including the specified forms listed in the entry, as declared goods, and section 15 restricts State taxation of declared goods to the prescribed rate and only at the specified stage. The decisive question was whether the rolled products ceased to be iron and steel because the scrap had been re-shaped, or whether they remained the same commodity in another form. Considering the structure of the entry, the nature of the listed sub-items, and the authorities on identity of goods after processing, the Court held that even if the scrap had undergone a manufacturing process, the finished rolled articles did not lose their character as iron and steel. The goods remained within the statutory description, and the only factual matter left open was whether the scrap had in fact suffered tax at the earlier stage.

Conclusion: The rolled products were held to remain iron and steel within section 14, so they could not be taxed again if the raw material had already suffered tax. The writ petitions nevertheless failed because the factual question of prior taxation of the scrap had to be examined by the assessing authority, and the petitions were dismissed.

Ratio Decidendi: Goods specified as declared goods do not cease to be covered by the statutory entry merely because they are converted into another form, if their essential character as the same commodity remains unchanged.

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