Sale of tender forms treated as business turnover where the transaction was incidental to trading activity.

Sale of tender forms charged by the assessee was held to be connected with and incidental to its trading activity, so the receipts fell within the wide statutory definition of "business" under the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act. Because the forms were issued in the course of inviting tenders for procurement of materials used in the assessee's business, the consideration for those forms formed part of taxable turnover. The absence of a profit motive did not exclude the transaction from tax. The issue was decided against the assessee, and sales tax was held payable on the tender-form sales.

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Issues: Whether the sale of tender forms by the assessee was exigible to sales tax under the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act as part of its business or as a transaction incidental or ancillary to its trade.

Analysis: The definition of "business" under section 2(cc) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Act is wide and includes not only trade, commerce or manufacture but also transactions in connection with or incidental or ancillary to such activities, irrespective of profit motive. The assessee, while inviting tenders for procurement of materials used in its business, charged consideration for tender forms and those forms conferred on purchasers a right to participate in the bidding process. The sale of such forms was therefore connected with and incidental to the assessee's trading activity and formed part of the taxable turnover.

Conclusion: The sale of tender forms was liable to sales tax and the issue was decided against the assessee.

Ratio Decidendi: A transaction that is connected with, or incidental or ancillary to, a dealer's trading activity falls within "business" and is includible in taxable turnover even if it is not the dealer's principal commercial activity or is carried on without profit motive.

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