General sales tax exemption for leather-free footwear extends to inter-State turnover under the Central Sales Tax Act.

Section 8(2-A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 applies where goods are exempt from State tax generally, but not where the exemption is confined to specified conditions or circumstances. The Rajasthan High Court distinguished conditions attached to a dealer or industrial unit from criteria used only to identify the class of goods. On that approach, the State notification dated 7 March 1994 exempting footwear not made of leather and valued up to Rs. 100 was treated as a general exemption of a class of goods, because it imposed no dealer-specific or turnover-specific condition. The inter-State turnover of such footwear was therefore exempt under section 8(2-A).

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Issues: Whether the exemption granted by the State notification dated 7 March 1994 for footwear not made of leather and valued up to Rs. 100 was a general exemption so as to extend to inter-State sales under section 8(2-A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956.

Analysis: Section 8(2-A) applies where goods, or a class or category of goods, are exempt from State tax generally and not where the exemption operates only in specified circumstances or under specified conditions. The distinction drawn in the earlier Supreme Court review decision was between conditions attached to the dealer or industrial unit and criteria used merely to identify the goods or class of goods. The notification in question exempted a defined class of footwear itself and did not impose any condition relating to the dealer, manufacturer, or any special circumstance governing the turnover. The prior Rajasthan decision dealing with a different notification was therefore not controlling.

Conclusion: The exemption was a general exemption of a class of goods, and the inter-State turnover of such footwear was exempt under section 8(2-A) of the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956.

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