Declaration requirement for imported goods does not extend to a dealer's own hotel use; penalty cannot stand.

Rule 62A(3) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Rules, 1955 required a declaration in Form S.T. 18A only where notified goods were imported for specified commercial purposes such as sale, manufacture or processing for sale, mining, power generation or packing for sale. Goods imported for the dealer's own use in its hotel did not fall within that requirement, so the declaration obligation was inapplicable and the penalty could not be sustained. The concurrent finding that the goods were brought in for hotel use was treated as a finding of fact and did not, by itself, give rise to any question of law.

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Issues: Whether the requirement to furnish declaration in form S.T. 18A under Rule 62A(3) of the Rajasthan Sales Tax Rules, 1955 applied to goods imported for use by the owner himself, and whether the concurrent finding that the goods were imported for use in the hotel gave rise to any question of law.

Analysis: Rule 62A(3) required a registered dealer importing notified goods for sale, manufacture or processing of goods for sale, mining, generation or distribution of electricity or packing of goods for sale to furnish declaration in form S.T. 18A. On the facts recorded, the goods were imported for use in the hotel of the dealer and not for any of the stated commercial purposes. The provision was therefore held inapplicable to goods imported for own use. The concurrent finding that the goods were being imported for use in the hotel was treated as a finding of fact, and no question of law was found to arise.

Conclusion: The penalty could not be sustained, and the revision failed.

Ratio Decidendi: A declaration requirement framed for imports intended for specified commercial purposes does not apply to goods imported for the owner's own use, and a concurrent factual finding on such use does not by itself raise a question of law.

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