Common commercial meaning of "books" includes booklets, brochures and annual reports for sales tax exemption.

The word "books" in the exemption entries under the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948 and the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973 is construed in its popular and ordinary commercial sense, not as limited to literary or text books. On that approach, printed material that conveys knowledge, information or guidance may qualify as books even if intended for a specialised readership. Booklets, brochures and annual reports were therefore treated as books and exempt from sales tax.

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Issues: Whether booklets, brochures and annual reports printed and sold by the assessee fall within the word "books" in the exempting entries of the Punjab General Sales Tax Act, 1948 and the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973.

Analysis: The expression "books" in an exemption entry is to be understood in its popular and ordinary sense, as construed in common parlance by persons conversant with the subject matter. On that approach, the term is not confined to literary or text books alone. The reasoning accepted that booklets and brochures had already been treated as books in prior authority, and that annual reports, though intended for a specialised readership, still convey knowledge, information and guidance and are books for learning and reference. The nature of the material, the form in which it is printed, and its use for acquiring information were treated as decisive, rather than whether it was read by the public at large.

Conclusion: Booklets, brochures and annual reports printed and sold by the assessee were held to fall within the word "books" and were exempt from sales tax.

Ratio Decidendi: In interpreting an exemption entry using the word "books", the term must be given its common and ordinary commercial meaning, and printed material that serves to impart knowledge or information is covered even if it is not a literary or text book.

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