State sales tax exemption followed amended excise definition of cotton fabrics under an integrated legislative scheme.

A State sales tax exemption for cotton fabrics was interpreted as part of an integrated legislative scheme linking the Kerala Act with the Central excise and special duty statutes. The reference to the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 was treated as a reference to the parent definition as it stood from time to time, not a frozen incorporation fixed on 1 April 1963. The later 1969 amendment therefore governed the relevant assessment years, and the exemption extended to the amended category of cotton fabrics, including PVC cloth. The concern that this approach involved excessive delegation or abdication of legislative power was rejected.

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Issues: Whether the exemption for cotton fabrics under Item 7 of the Third Schedule to the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963 was confined to the definition of cotton fabrics as it stood on 1 April 1963 in the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944, or whether it expanded with later amendments, including the 1969 amendment.

Analysis: The exemption in the State Act referred to the definition of cotton fabrics in the Central excise law as part of a broader statutory scheme connecting sales tax, declared goods, and additional excise duty. The reference was held to be one of reference or citation in the context of an integrated legislative pattern, not a frozen incorporation insulated from later changes. The Court held that the Kerala provision could not be read in isolation from the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 and the Additional Duties of Excise (Goods of Special Importance) Act, 1957, both of which reflected a coordinated policy concerning goods of special importance. The scheme and purpose of the legislation supported reading the State exemption with the current definition in the parent excise law, and the concern about abdication of legislative power or excessive delegation was rejected.

Conclusion: The scope of Item 7 varied with the corresponding definition in the Central Excises and Salt Act, 1944 as it stood at the relevant time, and for the assessment years in question the amended 1969 definition applied. The exemption therefore covered the amended category of cotton fabrics, including PVC cloth.

Ratio Decidendi: Where a State sales tax exemption adopts a definition from another statute as part of a coordinated legislative scheme, the adopted definition may take its meaning from the parent statute as amended from time to time, unless the context shows a contrary intention.

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