Lubricating oil classification under sales tax law upheld for processed oil 666 based on trade understanding and product nature.

Oil 666 was treated as lubricating oil for sales tax purposes because its classification depended on its manufactured character, physical and chemical properties, actual use, and how it was understood in common parlance and trade. The earlier clarification relied on by the assessee concerned different oils and did not govern the product in dispute. On the material considered, oil 666 was found to be processed lubricating oil within Entry 47 of the First Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, and the single-point tax treatment applicable to lubricating oils and greases was upheld.

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Issues: Whether oil 666 was correctly classified as lubricating oil under Entry 47 of the First Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, and taxed at the applicable single-point rate.

Analysis: The classification turned on the nature of the product as manufactured and sold, its physical and chemical properties, its use, and the manner in which it is understood in common parlance and by the trade. The earlier clarification relied upon by the assessee related to different oils and did not govern the product in dispute. On the material on record, oil 666 was found to be processed lubricating oil falling within Entry 47, which covered lubricating oils and greases during the relevant period.

Conclusion: Oil 666 was rightly treated as lubricating oil falling under Entry 47 of the First Schedule, and the higher single-point tax treatment was upheld.

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