Sales tax exemption for bakery goods survives when the dealer also sells eggs, if both items are separately exempt.

A baker selling bakery goods prepared without power did not lose the sales tax exemption under item 63 of Schedule B merely because he also sold eggs, another separately exempt commodity. The governing interpretation was that "dealing exclusively" should not be read so rigidly as to defeat the exemption scheme where two exempt items are covered by different entries. A dealer's sale of more than one exempt commodity, by itself, does not extinguish entitlement to the exemption attached to bakery goods. The exemption for bakery goods therefore remained available.

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Issues: Whether a baker who is not exclusively dealing in bakery goods but also sells eggs remains entitled to exemption from sales tax on the sale of bakery goods under item 63 of Schedule B of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948.

Analysis: Item 63 exempted bakery goods prepared without using power when sold by bakers dealing exclusively in such goods, while item 18 separately exempted meat, fish and eggs. The question was whether the sale of another exempt commodity, namely eggs, would deprive the baker of the exemption under item 63. The Court held that the expression "dealing exclusively" could not be read so rigidly as to nullify both exemptions. A dealer selling more than one exempt commodity does not for that reason alone cease to be entitled to the exemption attached to bakery goods.

Conclusion: The baker remained eligible for exemption on the sale of bakery goods. The question was answered in the affirmative, in favour of the assessee and against the department.

Final Conclusion: The reference was answered by holding that the exemption for bakery goods was not lost merely because the dealer also sold eggs, and the assessee's claim to exemption succeeded.

Ratio Decidendi: Where two commodities are separately exempted under the sales tax schedule, the sale of one exempt commodity does not by itself destroy entitlement to exemption on the other merely because the dealer is not dealing exclusively in only one of them.

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