Deemed sale of club refreshments brings member supplies within sales tax, regardless of incorporation status.

Article 366(29A), read with the corresponding State sales tax provision, treats the supply of food, drink, or other consumables by a club to its members for consideration as a deemed sale. The doctrine of mutuality no longer defeats levy where the Legislature has expressly brought such transactions within the definition of sale. On that basis, sales tax applies to refreshments supplied by both incorporated and unincorporated clubs, and the State provision is consistent with the Constitution.

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Issues: Whether sales tax is leviable on refreshments supplied by incorporated and unincorporated clubs to their members after the constitutional amendment inserting Article 366(29A) and the corresponding amendment to the State sales tax law.

Analysis: The earlier line of decisions had proceeded on the basis that a members' club, acting for its members, did not effect a sale when it supplied refreshments. That position was displaced by Article 366(29A), especially sub-clause (f), which deems the supply of food, drink, or other articles for human consumption for consideration to be a sale, without drawing any distinction between incorporated and unincorporated bodies. The corresponding provision in section 2(n)(vi) of the State Act was held to be fully in conformity with the Constitution. The doctrine of mutuality could no longer be invoked to defeat levy of sales tax where the Legislature had expressly brought such transactions within the definition of sale.

Conclusion: Sales tax is leviable on refreshments supplied by clubs to their members, whether the clubs are incorporated or unincorporated, and the challenge to the levy fails.

Final Conclusion: The constitutional and statutory amendments restored taxability of club supplies of food and refreshments for consideration, and the writ petitions were not maintainable on the pleaded ground.

Ratio Decidendi: After Article 366(29A), supply of food, drink, or other consumables by a club to its members for consideration is a deemed sale, and the club's corporate or unincorporated status does not exclude such transactions from sales tax where the State law is in conformity with the constitutional definition.

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