Ejusdem generis controls machinery classification where excavator-type equipment matches the statutory genus of similar load-handling machines.

Excavator or shovel machinery and its spares were treated as falling within serial No. 55-A of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, rather than serial No. 81, because the entry covered loaders and other similar machinery in which a mechanically propelled vehicle formed an integral part. The decisive test was functional and structural similarity within the statutory genus, not the presence of pneumatic tyres or the stationary manner of use. The rule of ejusdem generis applied since the general words followed specific machinery of the same class, and the Revenue's classification was upheld.

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Issues: Whether excavator or shovel and its spares fall within serial No. 55-A of the First Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, or instead under serial No. 81 of that Schedule.

Analysis: Serial No. 55-A covered rear dumps, loaders, scrapers, forklift trucks and other similar varieties of machinery of which a mechanically propelled vehicle formed an integral part. The decisive feature was not the presence of pneumatic tyres, but the fact that a mechanically propelled vehicle formed an integral part of the machinery. Excavator or shovel machinery, though mounted differently and used in a stationary manner at work sites, performed functions closely akin to loaders in scooping and unloading earth and similar materials. On that basis, the machinery answered the description of similar machinery in the entry. The rule of ejusdem generis was held applicable because the general words followed an enumeration of specific machinery sharing a common genus.

Conclusion: Excavator or shovel and its spares were held to fall under serial No. 55-A and not under serial No. 81. The classification made by the Revenue was upheld.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a taxing entry enumerates specific machinery and then uses general words covering similar machinery of which a mechanically propelled vehicle forms an integral part, the decisive test is functional and structural similarity within the statutory genus, not merely the mode of movement or the presence of tyres.

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