Newspaper exemption depends on dominant news content, not daily publication or registration, for tax classification.

Publications qualify as newspapers only if their dominant purpose is to convey recent news, even if they also carry advertisements or other incidental matter. Publications mainly containing astrological and numerological forecasts, with only stray news items, do not satisfy that ordinary meaning. Daily publication and registration under the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867 do not change the essential character of the publication. On that basis, the publications were not newspapers within the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 and therefore remained taxable goods rather than exempt newspaper matter.

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Issues: Whether the publications "Joker" and "Jabara", which mainly contained astrological and numerological forecasts with only stray news items, were newspapers within the meaning of sub-section (13) of section 2 of the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 and therefore excluded from the definition of goods.

Analysis: The constitutional scheme permits State sales tax on goods other than newspapers, while newspapers are outside the State taxing power. The statutory exclusion in the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959 therefore turned on whether the publications answered the ordinary meaning of "newspaper". A newspaper, in its ordinary sense, is a publication whose main purpose is to convey recent news, though it may also contain advertisements or other incidental matter. The publications in question predominantly carried lucky numbers, dates and astrological predictions, with only stray news items inserted. Mere daily publication, or registration under the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, did not alter their essential character. The dominant purpose of the publications was not to report news, and incidental news items could not convert them into newspapers.

Conclusion: The publications were not newspapers and were taxable goods under the Bombay Sales Tax Act, 1959; the reference was answered against the assessee and in favour of the Revenue.

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