TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1997 (8) TMI 445
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....N. KIRPAL, J.-In these appeals by special leave what arises for consideration is whether the respondent is liable to pay sales tax and to be registered as a dealer under the relevant provisions of the Orissa Sales Tax Act, 1947 (hereinafter referred to as "the said Act"). 2.. The respondent's main business is of running of buses and providing transport facilities to the travelling public. Along with these services the respondent has been disposing of unserviceable, old, obsolete and unutilised parts from its stores. These parts used to be disposed of at yearly intervals. The respondent did not get itself registered as a dealer under the said Act. According to it, no business was being carried on in respect of which any sales tax could ha....
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....s of new spare parts and accessories of such vehicles as Ford, Chevrolet, Despot, Dodge, etc., were not made with an intention to carry on business of selling the same. (c) Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the Member, Additional Sales Tax Tribunal, is legally correct to hold that the assessee is not a dealer as per section 2(c) of the Orissa Sales Tax Act, 1947 in respect of the sale turnover of unutilised new spare parts." The High Court vide its judgment answered all the aforesaid questions in favour of the respondent and held that it had not carried on any business as a dealer and, therefore, was not liable to payment of sales tax. 6.. On behalf of the appellant it is contended that though the main bus....
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....uity, etc., of purchase and sales in those items was the determining factor. This principle has been followed by the Andhra Pradesh High Court in Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation, Hyderabad v. Commercial Tax Officer [1971] 27 STC 42 and the State of Andhra Pradesh v. Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation [1989] 74 STC 336. 8.. The relevant provisions of the Orissa Act are first required to be examined in order to see whether the aforesaid decisions can support the respondent's contentions. Section 4 of the said Act is a charging section. It, inter alia, provides that every dealer whose gross turnover during the year exceeds the specified limit shall be liable to pay tax under the said Act on the sales and purchas....
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....ce, manufacture, adventure or concern." 9.. The decision of this Court in Raipur Manufacturing Co. Ltd. case [1967] 19 STC 1 cannot be made applicable here. In that case this Court considered the volume, frequency, continuity and regularity of transactions of purchase and sales being an important element in determining whether a business was being carried out apart from the element of profit making being there. Hence in the Orissa Act the expression "dealer" includes a casual dealer. A casual dealer defined in section 2(bb) is one who has occasional transactions of a business nature involving purchasing, selling, supplying or distributing goods, whether for commission, remuneration or otherwise. This means that even if a person did not h....
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....included the words "whether or not such trade, commerce, manufacture, adventure or concern is carried on with a motive to make gain or profit and whether or not any profit accrues from such trade, commerce, manufacture, adventure or concern". In connection with the sale of scrap it was observed at page 433 as follows: "In the view we hold the scrap sold is certainly connected with the business of the company and the turnover in respect of this commodity is liable to tax. It cannot also be said that the turnover in respect of the sale of the assessee's advertisement materials at cost price or less than cost price is not connected with the business of the assessee. Calendars, wallets and key chains are all given by the dealers to its custo....
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....thin the meaning of the expression business occurring in the said Act. Such sales were, therefore, to be held to exigible to sales tax. 12.. The definition of the word "business" in the Orissa Act being pari materia with the definition of such expression in the Madras Act as well as the Rajasthan Act, the ratio of the decision in Burmah Shell case [1973] 31 STC 426 (SC) and the District Controller's case [1976] 37 STC 423 (SC) would be clearly applicable in the instant case and, therefore, the respondent will have to be regarded as a dealer carrying on the business of selling spare parts, etc., and thereby become liable to pay sales tax on the sale of such items. 13. It was submitted by Mr. Misra that neither the High Court nor....