TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
1991 (8) TMI 299
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....) imposing the tax on the turnover of station wagons at the rate of 12 per cent. The petitioner was carrying on the business in motor vehicles, tractors, three wheelers, station wagons, mini buses and automobiles, spares, etc. While passing the assessment order for the assessment year 1976-77 under rule 41(7) the tax was imposed at the rate of 9 per cent on the turnover of station wagons but subsequently a notice under section 21 of the Act was issued taxing the station wagons at the rate of 12 per cent in view of the decision of this Court in the case of Gopal Enterprises v. Commissioner of Sales Tax 1979 UPTC 1129. In this case what has been held is quoted as under: "That the station wagons sold by the petitioner are liabl....
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.... the petitioner, what he contends for the first time in this writ petition is that the station wagons can be covered by clause (a) of entry 62 under "motor car". The contention is that irrespective of the shape and size the station wagon is the commercial name of a particular motor car and it continued to be a motor car and is liable to be taxed at the rate of 7 per cent. Motor car may be of different variety, shapes and design which may be used for different purposes. It may be sports car, may be exclusively required for personal use by the passengers, it may be for the purposes of transporting the passengers from one place to another which is commonly known as taxi. Motor car whose capacity is of 9 persons, is treated as the car while ....
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....tion relied by the learned counsel for the petitioner given in the Motor Vehicles Act, 1939, could be of no avail. Next reliance was placed on the dictionary meaning of the words "bus", "motor bus" and "motor car". This reliance was placed to bring the words "station wagon" under entry 62(b) for the purpose of taxability of station wagons at 9 per cent. Random House Dictionary of the English language defines "bus " as under: Bus: a motor vehicle with a long body equipped with seats or benches for passengers, usually operating as part of a scheduled service line; omnibus. Similarly "motor bus" has been defined as under: "Motor bus": a passenger bus powered by a motor. "Motor car" has been defined as under: "Motor car": an auto....
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....he assessing authority of the present case has followed the decision of this Court as quoted above and has assessed the station wagons at 12 per cent. In the case of British India Corporation Ltd. v. Commissioner of Sales Tax 1987 UPTC 394 the Full Bench of this Court has held as under: ".............that where words or terms are not defined in Sales Tax Act they have to be understood in their common parlance or as understood by traders in those articles. In this case from the judgment of the Assistant Commissioner (Judicial) it appears that the assessee produced evidence to indicate that cardigans and pullovers sold by the assessee were known in commercial circles as articles of hosiery." However, no finding was recorded by the asses....