General sales tax exemption for small-scale industry can extend to inter-State sales under section 8(2A) when no special conditions apply.

A State sales tax exemption granted to a registered small-scale industry for goods manufactured during a specified period was treated as a general exemption for section 8(2A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, because it applied broadly and was not limited by specified circumstances, conditions, or a special stage of levy. The Bombay HC analysis states that the amended wording of section 8(2A) did not narrow the concept of general exemption, and the omission of the word "dealer" did not alter that construction. On that basis, the local exemption was not caught by the exclusionary explanation, and the assessee's inter-State sales remained exempt from Central sales tax.

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Issues: Whether the exemption from local sales tax granted to a registered small-scale industry under entry 68 of the Second Schedule to the Goa Sales Tax Act constituted an exemption from tax generally within section 8(2A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956, so as to exempt the assessee's inter-State sales from Central sales tax.

Analysis: The exemption under entry 68 applied generally to sales of goods manufactured by a registered small-scale industry during the specified period and was not dependent on any qualifying circumstance, condition, or special stage of levy. The explanation to section 8(2A) excludes only those exemptions that operate in specified circumstances, under specified conditions, or at specified stages, or otherwise than with reference to turnover. The Court held that the amended wording of section 8(2A) did not alter the substance of the concept of general exemption, and the omission of the word "dealer" did not justify a narrower construction. The exemption granted by the Goa Act was therefore not one falling within the exclusionary explanation, and the later levy argument based on a supposed specified stage of taxation was also rejected because no notification fixed any such stage for the goods in question.

Conclusion: The assessee's local exemption was a general exemption, and its inter-State sales were entitled to exemption under section 8(2A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956.

Ratio Decidendi: An exemption from State sales tax granted generally to a class of goods or dealers remains a "general" exemption for section 8(2A) purposes unless it is restricted by specified circumstances, specified conditions, or a specified stage of levy.

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