Revision confined to error of law failed where video cassette hiring was treated as temporary custody, not transfer of right.

A revision under section 41 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act will not succeed unless the Tribunal's finding is shown to involve an error of law or to be contrary to law. Here, the Tribunal held that hiring out video cassettes passed only temporary custody to customers for viewing and did not transfer any right in the goods, relying on the nature of the transaction and earlier decisions. The High Court found no legal infirmity in that conclusion and held that the amendment argument based on section 5(1) was irrelevant because section 5(1)(iii) governed the issue. The revision was therefore not maintainable on the ground urged, and the Tribunal's view remained undisturbed.

---

---

Issues: Whether, in a revision under section 41 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, the Tribunal's view that hiring out video cassettes amounted only to temporary custody and not a transfer of right called for interference.

Analysis: The Tribunal had relied on earlier reported decisions and examined the nature of the transaction in detail. It found that the cassettes were supplied to customers only for viewing, that temporary custody alone passed to them, and that the cassettes were returned after use. On that reasoning, the High Court held that the Tribunal had neither failed to decide any question of law nor reached a conclusion that was erroneous or contrary to law for the purpose of section 41. The argument based on amendment to section 5(1) was found irrelevant in the factual setting, since section 5(1)(iii) was the operative provision and the change complained of did not affect the issue.

Conclusion: The revision was not maintainable on the ground urged, and the Tribunal's decision was left undisturbed.

Final Conclusion: The assessee's challenge failed, and the revenue's assessment based on the hiring transactions was sustained.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a statutory revision is confined to error of law, a finding that hiring transactions involve only temporary custody and not a transfer of right will not be interfered with unless it is shown to be erroneous or contrary to law.

---