TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1973 (1) TMI 83
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....the said purchase of asbestos sheets. The assessing authority took the view that the registration certificate issued to the assessees by the registering authority constituted under that Act did not enable them to issue C form certificates in respect of asbestos sheets and that the issue of C form certificates by the assessees was under a misrepresentation that they are entitled to purchase asbestos sheets under the registration certificates issued to them. He, therefore, invoked the provisions of section 10A and levied the penalty holding that the assessees have committed an offence under section 10(b) of the Act. There was an appeal by the assessees to the Appellate Assistant Commissioner, who set aside the order holding that for an offen....
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....ly sheets of a specified category like plastic, moulding and insulating materials and sheets and that the word will not include asbestos sheets in question. The Board of Revenue was not inclined to accept the assessees' case that they had genuinely believed that the registration certificate covered asbestos sheets as well. The Board of Revenue proceeded on its interpretation of the entries in the registration certificate that asbestos sheets cannot be included within the word "sheets" and held that the assessees are not justified in construing the word "sheets" against the plain language used in the registration certificate and that the word "sheets" should be given the ordinary meaning which a prudent person would give to it. The entire re....
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....hased by them as the goods purchased are sheets used for the erection of plant and equipment which are incidental to the manufacture of goods. Merely because that belief turns out to be not proper or correct, does not mean that the issue of C form certificate was on the basis of false representation. The phrase "falsely represents" in clause (b) indicates that mens rea is an important ingredient for the offence contemplated in sub-clause (b). In this case, the Appellate Assistant Commissioner held that there is no mens rea established and that the representation has been made under a bona fide belief that the goods were included in the registration certificate. We find that the Board had no other material, apart from the materials available....