Tax exemption for plywood fails when a negative list notification overrides committee-granted concessional treatment.

Plywood sales were held outside the industrial exemption scheme because the amending notification placed plywood in the negative list under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963. A District Level Committee could not grant exemption contrary to that notification, and any such order was without statutory authority, beyond jurisdiction, and void. The assessee therefore could not rely on the mistaken grant of exemption to resist tax assessment. The governing principle stated is that a concessionary tax exemption issued in direct conflict with the applicable notification and negative list cannot bind the assessing authority.

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Issues: Whether the assessee was entitled to exemption on sales of plywood under the industrial exemption notification, and whether the District Level Committee could validly grant such exemption despite the product being included in the negative list.

Analysis: The exemption scheme under Section 10 of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 had to be read with the amending notification inserting plywood in the negative list. Once plywood was specifically excluded from concessional treatment, the District Level Committee could not confer exemption contrary to the notification. An order granting such exemption without statutory authority was beyond jurisdiction and therefore void. The assessee could not rely on the mistaken grant of exemption to sustain a benefit inconsistent with the governing notification.

Conclusion: The assessee was not entitled to exemption on plywood sales, and the assessment levying tax on such sales was valid.

Final Conclusion: The revision petitions failed because the exemption order relating to plywood was a nullity and the revenue authorities were justified in denying the benefit.

Ratio Decidendi: A concessionary tax exemption granted in direct conflict with the governing notification and negative list is without jurisdiction and void, and cannot bind the assessing authority.

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