Second sale exemption for recorded cassettes: empty and recorded cassettes treated as the same goods under sales tax entry.

Recorded cassettes were held not to be a distinct commodity from empty cassettes for the purpose of entry 191 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963. Because the assessee had already purchased the empty cassettes at the first point of sale, the later sale of the recorded cassettes was treated as only a second sale of the same goods and was therefore exempt from tax under that entry. The note also records that the earlier assessment year issue was not separately challenged and the Tribunal's view for that year remained undisturbed.

---

---

Issues: Whether recorded cassettes sold by the assessee were taxable under entry 191 of the First Schedule to the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, or were exempt as a second sale of the same goods.

Analysis: Entry 191 covered tapes and cassettes for electronic equipment and subjected them to tax only at the point of first sale in the State. The Court held that empty cassettes and recorded cassettes were not different goods for the purpose of that entry. Since the assessee had already purchased the empty cassettes in the course of the first sale, the subsequent sale of recorded cassettes was only a second sale. The Court also noted that the common question for the earlier assessment year had not been separately challenged and, in any event, the Tribunal's view on that year was left undisturbed.

Conclusion: The sale of recorded cassettes was not taxable under entry 191 and the assessee was entitled to exemption as a second sale.

---