Branded goods treatment under sales tax law upheld for milk products sold through Aavin-marked premises and documents.

Milk products sold under the "Aavin" brand were treated as goods sold under a registered brand name for purposes of entry 103 of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959. The Tribunal applied a broad construction of "apply a trade mark" under section 76(1)(a) of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958, holding that brand use may extend beyond marking on the goods or packages to use on premises, invoices, price lists, advertisements and related commercial documents. Because the assessee's products were marketed through branded bunks and supporting sales materials also carried the mark, the goods remained identifiable to consumers as branded goods. The levy at 10 per cent was therefore upheld.

---

---

Issues: Whether milk products sold by the assessee without the mark "Aavin" were nevertheless liable to tax at 10 per cent under entry 103 of the First Schedule to the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959.

Analysis: Entry 103 applied to goods sold under a registered brand name. The expression "apply a trade mark" under section 76(1)(a) of the Trade and Merchandise Marks Act, 1958 was construed broadly to cover not only the marking on the goods or packages, but also use of the mark in the premises, invoices, price lists, advertisements and other commercial documents connected with the sale. The materials showed that the assessee's milk products were sold in bunks maintained under the "Aavin" brand and that the invoices and price lists also carried the trade mark. On those facts, the goods were identifiable to consumers as branded goods even if the mark was not printed on every container.

Conclusion: The milk products sold by the assessee fell within entry 103 and were taxable at 10 per cent; the challenge to the levy failed.

---