Dealer definition under sales tax law includes regular sale of surplus agricultural produce by an agriculturist.

Under section 2(f) of the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1959, an agriculturist who regularly sells surplus agricultural produce from his own land was held to fall within the definition of "dealer". The Court treated the omission of the words "carries on business" as material and distinguished earlier authority decided under a different statutory definition. On that wording, regular sale of surplus agricultural produce attracted sales tax liability, and the assessment was upheld in favour of the Revenue.

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Issues: Whether an agriculturist who regularly sells surplus agricultural produce grown on his land is a "dealer" within the meaning of section 2(f) of the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1959 and is liable to sales tax.

Analysis: The definition of "dealer" in the 1959 Act was compared with the earlier Bihar sales tax enactments. The absence of the words "carries on business" was treated as material, because the Supreme Court had already held that under the amended definition in the 1947 Act a person selling agricultural produce from his land could be a dealer. The earlier view that an agriculturist selling surplus produce was not a dealer was distinguished on the ground that it arose under a materially different statutory definition. On the wording of section 2(f), the Court held that regular sale of surplus agricultural produce falls within the definition of dealer.

Conclusion: The question was answered in the affirmative. The assessee was held to be a dealer under section 2(f) of the Bihar Sales Tax Act, 1959 and the assessment was upheld in favour of the Revenue.

Ratio Decidendi: Where the statutory definition of "dealer" includes a person who sells goods without requiring proof that he carries on a business, regular sale of surplus agricultural produce by an agriculturist can attract sales tax liability.

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