Exemption entry for "all books" bars sales tax on exercise and account books; tax collected in mistake of law was refundable.

A prior binding interpretation of the exemption entry "all books" was applied to include exercise books, account books, ledgers, journals and similar books, so turnover from those goods was not exigible to sales tax. The tax had been collected contrary to that interpretation and therefore under a mistake of law. On that basis, assessment orders levying tax on the disputed turnovers were quashed and refund of the tax collected was directed. The same legal position was applied to the connected writ petitions.

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Issues: Whether sales tax could be levied on the turnover of exercise books, account books and similar books under the relevant Government Order, and whether the assessment orders collecting such tax were liable to be quashed with refund of the tax collected.

Analysis: The Court followed its earlier decision holding that the expression "all books" in the Government Order covered day-books, account books, ledgers, journals, blank sheets fastened together and similar books, and therefore included exercise books and account books. On that construction, the turnover in question was not exigible to sales tax. The tax had been collected under a mistake of law, and there was no reason to depart from the earlier binding view. The same legal position governed the connected writ petitions as well.

Conclusion: The assessment orders, to the extent they levied tax on the turnover of exercise books, account books and similar books, were quashed and refund of the tax collected was directed in favour of the assessee.

Final Conclusion: The writ petitions were allowed and the department was directed to refund the tax collected on the disputed turnovers.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a prior binding interpretation of an exemption entry covers the goods in question, sales tax collected contrary to that interpretation is liable to be quashed and refunded as tax collected under a mistake of law.

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