Fodder classification under sales tax law: binola chhilka was treated as exempt animal feed, not taxable goods.

Binola chhilka, used as an additive in cattle feed, was held to fall within the ordinary meaning of "fodder" in entry 34 of Schedule B to the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973. Because the Act and Rules did not define "fodder" and there was no evidence of any special commercial meaning, the court applied the term's ordinary sense and treated cottonseed chhilka as residual roughage forming a staple part of animal food. The exclusion in entry 34 covered oil-cakes, guar giri, and chhilka of foodgrains and pulses, but not cottonseed chhilka. Binola chhilka was therefore treated as exempt from tax.

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Issues: Whether binola chhilka, used as an additive in cattle feed, falls within the expression "fodder" in entry 34 of Schedule B of the Haryana General Sales Tax Act, 1973.

Analysis: The expression "fodder" was not defined in the Act or the Rules, and there was no evidence showing any special commercial understanding. In such circumstances, the ordinary meaning had to be applied. Binola chhilka, being the residual roughage after extraction of oil from cotton seeds, formed a staple part of animal food and therefore answered the description of fodder. The exclusion in entry 34 covered oil-cakes, guar giri, and chhilka of foodgrains and pulses, but not cottonseed chhilka.

Conclusion: Binola chhilka is fodder within entry 34 and is exempt from tax; the question was answered in the affirmative and against the Revenue.

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