Common parlance test for steel furniture classification excludes factory-use trolleys and similar goods from excise duty.

Classification under Tariff Item No. 40 had to be determined by the ordinary and common parlance meaning of the goods, not by mere resemblance to furniture or by a departmental notification that could not enlarge the tariff entry. Trolleys used in the factory for shifting materials, storage bins, stainless steel pump stands, and a box with door were found not to be steel furniture because they were not articles used as furniture for human convenience or comfort. The seven items were therefore outside Tariff Item No. 40 and not liable to excise duty as steel furniture; the assessment and penalty orders were unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether the seven items manufactured by the petitioners, namely trolleys, storage bins, stainless steel pump stands and a box with door, were liable to excise duty as steel furniture under Tariff Item No. 40.

Analysis: Tariff Item No. 40 was read as applying to articles that answer the description of steel furniture in ordinary commercial and common parlance. The notification relied upon by the department was treated only as a guide and not as enlarging the tariff entry beyond its plain meaning. The disputed trolleys were found to be factory-use goods for shifting materials, and the remaining articles were also found not to be articles of furniture. Mere resemblance to cupboards, stands or containers was held insufficient where the goods were not used as furniture for human convenience or comfort.

Conclusion: The seven items did not fall within Tariff Item No. 40 and were not liable to excise duty as steel furniture.

Final Conclusion: The assessment and penalty orders were unsustainable, and the petitioners were entitled to relief.

Ratio Decidendi: Classification under a tariff entry must be determined by the ordinary and common parlance meaning of the goods, and an item is not steel furniture merely because it resembles furniture in form or name.

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