Common parlance test treats almonds as dry fruits for sales tax classification under the relevant entry.

Almonds were treated as falling within the expression "dry fruits" in entry 112 of the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957. Because the Act did not define "dry fruit", the term was construed in its ordinary and commercial sense. Applying the common parlance test, the Court found that almonds are understood in trade and among English-speaking people as dry fruits, and their nut form did not exclude them from the entry. The disputed turnover was therefore entitled to the claimed treatment.

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Issues: Whether almonds fall within the expression "dry fruits" under entry 112 of the First Schedule to the Andhra Pradesh General Sales Tax Act, 1957.

Analysis: The expression "dry fruit" was not defined in the Act, so it had to be understood in its ordinary and commercial sense. Applying the common parlance test, the Court held that almond is understood among English-speaking people and in trade as a dry fruit. The fact that almond is in the form of a nut did not prevent it from being treated as a dry fruit for purposes of the entry.

Conclusion: Almonds fall within the meaning of "dry fruits" in entry 112, and the disputed turnover was therefore entitled to the claimed treatment.

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