Trade meaning of "brasswares" governs exemption, bringing gilet, German silver, kansa and phool within the notification.

An exemption notification using the term "brasswares" was construed in its ordinary trade sense, not in a technical or scientific metallurgical sense. On the materials before the Court, gilet, German silver, kansa and phool were understood in commerce as forms of brassware, and the language of the notification indicated a broad commercial category rather than a narrow definition. The petitioners were therefore held entitled to sales tax exemption for those varieties.

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Issues: Whether the expression "brasswares" in the exemption notification covered wares described in trade as gilet, German silver, kansa and phool, so as to entitle the petitioners to exemption from sales tax.

Analysis: The expression used in a sales tax exemption notification was to be construed not in a technical or scientific sense but in the sense in which it is understood in ordinary trade and by the purchasing public. The materials placed before the Court showed that the trade understood the varieties described as gilet, German silver, kansa and phool as forms of brassware. The use of terms such as gulli bhatties, para bhatties and darja bhatties in the notification also indicated that the notification was intended to cover the broad commercial category of brasswares rather than a narrow metallurgical definition.

Conclusion: Yes. Brasswares in the notification included the varieties described as gilet, German silver, kansa and phool, and the petitioners were entitled to exemption.

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