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2011 (4) TMI 528

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....ological instruments/equipments manufactured and sold by the respondent/assessee would be entitled to get exemption from payment of tax under the U.P. Trade Tax Act, 1948 (for short "the U.P. Act") as well as the Central Sales Tax Act, 1956 (for short "the Central Act") in view of the notifications No. 1166 dated 10-4-2000. The aforesaid issue was the only issue which was decided by the Tribunal in favour of the respondent-assessee and therefore in this appeal we are required to answer and decide the said issue, which is framed by us. 4. In order to answer the aforesaid issue which arises for our consideration, it would be necessary to set out some facts leading to filing of the present appeals. 5. The assessee/respondent is a proprietorship firm, which is engaged in the manufacture and sales of various "scientific and biological equipments/instruments, which are used mainly by biological scientists for research purposes for which the assessee is duly registered under the provisions of U.P. Act as well as the Central Act. The assessee/respondent was issued a notice by the assessing authority and the assessee appeared before the assessing authority and claimed that t....

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....ctured and sold by the respondent are used as instruments in the research laboratories for maintaining the environment free from bacteria, and therefore, the respondents are not entitled to claim exemption. 10.  The Assessee/Respondent filed appeals before the Trade Tax Tribunal, U.P. (Noida Bench) and the Tribunal by an order dated 21-2-2007 dismissed the appeals filed by the assessee/respondent holding that only such articles are exempted from tax which are used for educating children such as maps, charts, instrumental box, educational globe, biology instruments, and not those used for research purposes. 11. Thereafter, a Trade Tax Revision under Section 11 of the Trade Tax Act, 1948 was filed by the Respondent before the High Court of Allahabad and the High Court by its impugned judgment and order upheld the contention of the assessee/respondent and held that the assessee is entitled to the benefit of Notification No. 1166 dated 10-4-2000 holding that the description of the goods made in the notification has been clarified to be used by all the persons. While coming to such conclusions, reference was also made to the Hindi version of the notification dated 10-4-2....

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....owever, refuted the aforesaid contentions of the appellant and submitted that the equipments and instruments which are being manufactured by the assessee/respondent are mainly used for providing a safe environment for scientific experiments and research work and also they are used for the safety of scientists who are engaged in micro-biological research, diagnostic laboratories, hospitals and operation theatres. According to the counsel these equipments are used by persons, who undertake research work on high risk diseases like T.B., Hepatitis B, who are prone to get it and are at a higher risk of being infected by agents/bacteria which they handle and therefore, the surroundings where such research work is being undertaken requires to be made free from contamination to prevent, reduce or eliminate the risk of spread of infectious disease. He urged that the main purpose of these equipments is to provide bacteria/dust free i.e. bio-clean environment in the working chamber to prevent the risk of infections and the same are entitled for exemption. 17. It was further submitted that the word "biology" and "biological" are not different from each other and are interchangeable. ....

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....en grouped together are articles used in Education Institutions such as Maps Chart, Sketch Map, Instrument Box, Educational Globes etc. 24. This Court in the case of Maharashtra University of Health Sciences v. Satchikitsa Prasarak Mandal reported in (2010) 3 SCC 786 held as follows :- "27. The Latin expression "ejusdem generis" which means "of the same kind or nature" is a principle of construction, meaning thereby when general words in a statutory text are flanked by restricted words, the meaning of the general words are taken to be restricted by implication with the meaning of the restricted words. This is a principle which arises "from the linguistic implication by which words having literally a wide meaning (when taken in isolation) are treated as reduced in scope by the verbal context". It may be regarded as an instance of ellipsis, or reliance on implication. This principle is presumed to apply unless there is some contrary indication [see Glanville Williams, The Origins and Logical Implications of the Ejusdem Generis Rule, 7 Conv. (NS) 119]. 34. It is also one of the cardinal canons of construction that no statute can be interpreted in such a way as to re....

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....n can be gathered from the construction of the words of the notification or by necessary implication therefrom, the matter is different, but that is not the case here. In this connection we may refer to the observations of Lord Watson in Salomon v. Salomon & Co.1 : "Intention of the legislature is a common but very slippery phrase, which, popularly understood may signify anything from intention embodied in positive enactment to speculative opinion as to what the legislature probably would have meant, although there has been an omission to enact it. In a Court of Law or Equity, what the Legislature intended to be done or not to be done can only be legitimately ascertained from that which it has chosen to enact, either in express words or by reasonable and necessary implication." 27. It would also be relevant to mention here that there is a vast difference between Biology Instruments and Biological Instruments. The term Biology Instrument refers to a limited range of instruments confined for their use in study of 'Jeev Vigyan' only. The word Biological Instrument is a general word with its utility where wide scale applications including the goods as manufactured by the ass....

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....de to the earlier entry on the same subject which was used in the notification dated 20-5-1976. In the said notification the entry was in the following manner: "Maps, Educational Charts, Instruments Boxes, Educational Globes and instruments, such as instruments used in Mechanical drawings and Biology used by Students." 33. The aforesaid entry came to be amended subsequently and the entry vide notification dated 10-4-2000 was inserted granting exemption to the sales of Maps, Educational Charts, Instruments Boxes, Educational Globes and Scientific Mathematical Survey, Mechanical Drawings and Biology instruments and apparatus. All these items are used by the students studying in schools and colleges. 34. The respondent on the other hand manufacture and sell the articles, such as, Biological Safety Cabinets; Laminar Flow Cabinets; Fume Hoods; Air Showers; Operation Theatre Modules; Air Curtains; Air Conditioner Modules; Clean Tents; Clean Room Garments; Pass Boxes; Air Handling, Filter etc. These articles are manufactured and sold by the respondent to Hospitals, Medical Colleges, Advance Research Institutions and Laboratories. 35. A glance at the aforesaid it....