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PETITIONER: STATE OF ORISSA

       Vs.

RESPONDENT: M/S. DINABANDHU SAHU & SONS

DATE OF JUDGMENT30/03/1976

BENCH: GOSWAMI, P.K. BENCH: GOSWAMI, P.K. KHANNA, HANS RAJ

CITATION:  1976 AIR 1561            1976 SCR  (3) 966  1976 SCC  (4) 431

ACT:      Central  Sales   Tax  Act  (74  of  1956),  s.  14(vi)- Notification by  concerned department of Government of India including some  seeds in  ’oil seeds’-How  far  relevant  in determining category of seeds.

HEADNOTE:      Under s.  14(vi), Central  Sales Tax  Act, 1956,  among goods declared  to be  of special  importance in inter-State trade and  commerce are mentioned oil seeds, that is to say, seeds yielding non-volatile oils used for human consumption, or in  industry, etc.,  or volatile  oils  used  chiefly  in medicines etc.  The Assistant  Commissioner under the Orissa Sales  Tax   Act,  the  Tribunal,  and  the  High  Court  on reference, held  that jeera  dhania,  panmohuri,  methi  and postak are  oil-seeds within  the meaning  of s.  14(vi) and liable to  a lesser  rate of  tax. The  High Court relied on ordinary and  technical dictionaries  and a  notification of the Ministry  of Finance,  Department of  Economic  Affairs, Government  of   India,  dated   January  3,  1959  for  its conclusion.      In  appeal  to  this  Court  under  Art.  136,  it  was contended by  the State,  relying on State of Andhra Pradesh v. Kajjam  Ramchandraiah Gari  Anantaiah (1961)  12 STC 795, that the  Court should  adopt the  meaning  given  to  these articles in  common parlance by people who use them, that so understood they  are spices  and  not  oil-seeds,  and  that though they  yield non-volatile  oil to  a  certain  extent, there is  no evidence  that they fall within the description in s. 14(vi).      Dismissing the appeal, ^      HELD: It  cannot be  said that  the  Tribunal  was  not right, and  so it  is not  a fit case for interference under Art. 136,  when the  High Court  held that  the Tribunal was right. [970C-D, G]      (a) Item  3, Schedule  IV, A.P.  General Sales Tax Act, 1957, is  identical with  s. 14(vi)  of the  Central Act. In Kajjam Ramachandriah’s  case, the  Andhra Pradesh High Court held that  dhania did not come within the definition of oil- seeds relying  on some  letters from  (i) Director, National Chemical  Laboratory,   Poona,   and   (ii)   Central   Food

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Technological Research Institute, Mysore. [968F]      (b) The  High Court  was right  in the  present case in holding that the notification of the Government of India had no statutory  force and  was not  binding on  the Sales  Tax Officer, but  it cannot  be said  that the  High  Court  and Tribunal were not right in preferring the opinion therein as good evidence  for their  conclusion to  the opinions in the letters relied  upon by  the Andhra  Pradesh High Court. The Ministry of  Finance,  which  issued  the  notification,  is intimately  conversant   not  only   with  the   policy   of legislation  for   the  purpose  of  implementation  of  the provisions of the Central Act, but is also familiar with the nature and  quality of  the commodities  and also  their use from time to time. [970D-F]      (c) Further,  the letters  of  the  Director,  National Chemical  Laboratory  and  the  Central  Food  Technological Research  Institute,  do  not  indicate  that  the  opinions expressed therein were firm or even final or whether all the uses mentioned  in the  definition of oil-seeds were brought to their notice. [970F]      Commissioner of  Sales Tax,  Madhya Pradesh,  Indore v. Bakhat Rai  and Co.  (1966) 18  Sales Tax  Cases 285 and The Deputy Commissioner  of Agricultural  Income-tax  and  Sales Tax, Kozhikode v. Sreedhara Shenoy (1973) 32 Sales Tax Cases 181, referred to. 967

JUDGMENT:      CIVIL APPELLATE  JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal Nos. 912 to 916 of 1971.      Appeals by  Special Leave  from the  Judgment and Order dated the  2nd July 1969 of the Orissa High Court in Special Jurisdiction Cases Nos. 73, 74, 75 and 76 of 1964.      V. C.  Mahajan and  R. N.  Sachthey: for Appellants (In CAs. 912-13/71)      R. N. Sachthey; for Appellant in CAs. 914-16/71.      Gobind Das, amicus curiae for Respondent.      The Judgment of the Court was delivered by      GOSWAMI, J.-Five  quarters of  assessment of  sales tax are involved  in these  five appeals,  by special leave, the period commencing  from January  1, 1959  to March 31, 1960. This judgment  will govern  all these  appeals  involving  a common question.      The Assistant  Sales Tax  Officer, Cuttack, included in the turnover  of the  respondent the  sale price  of  jeera, dhania (coriander),  panmohuri, methi, postak and pipall and levied 5  per cent  sales tax under the Orissa Sales Tax Act (briefly  the   State  Act).   On   appeal   the   Assistant Commissioner of  Sales Tax,  Puri, allowed  the claim of the respondent and  held that  the  above  items  are  oil-seeds within the  meaning of  section 14(vi)  of the Central Sales Tax Act  and gave  the respondent the benefit of a lower tax of 2 per cent on the sale turnover of those goods instead of 5 per  cent under  the State  Act. On appeal by the State of Orissa to  the Sales Tax Tribunal claiming 5 per cent on the sale turnover  thereof under  the provisions  of the Central Sales Tax Act, the orders of the Assistant Commissioner were affirmed. On  application by  the State for each of the five quarters, the  Tribunal referred  the following  two  common questions under section 24 of the State Act:           "(1) Whether in the facts and circumstances of the      case, the  Sales Tax  Tribunal is right in holding that      jeera, dhania,  panmohuri, methi, postak and pipali are

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    oil-seeds within  the meaning  of  section  14  of  the      Central Act  and the tax payable under the State Law in      respect of  the sale  or purchase of these goods inside      the State,  cannot exceed  2 per  cent of  the sale  or      purchase price thereof.           (2) Whether the communication No. 4(8)-ST/57 dated      31st January,  1958, issued  by the Government of India      which is  only  an  official  communication  having  no      statutory sanction  behind it can have any legal effect      to  hold   the  goods   in  question  as  oil-seeds  as      understood in  common  parlance  and  whether  such  an      official  communication   is  binding   on  the   State      Government." We are not concerned with ’pipali’ in these appeals. 968      When these  appeals came  before  us  for  hearing  the respondent was not represented. We, therefore, requested Mr. Gobind Das to act as amicus curiae in these appeals.      Before we  may proceed further, we may immediately turn to section  14(vi) of the Central Sales Tax Act (briefly the Central Act):           "14. Certain  goods to  be special  importance  in      inter-State trade  or commerce.  It is  hereby declared      that the  following goods  are of special importance in      inter-State trade or commence:-           (vi) Oil-seeds,  that is  to say,  seeds  yielding      non-volatile oils  used for  human consumption,  or  in      industry, or in the manufacture of varnishes, soaps and      the like,  or in  lubrication, and  volatile oils  used      chiefly  in  medicines,  perfumes,  cosmetics  and  the      like".      The above  definition is  an explanatory  one and  uses mentioned therein  cover a  wide range.  If  the  particular items which  are assessed under the State Act can be brought under the  definition of  "oil-seeds", as given in the above provision, the  assessee will be entitled to a lower levy of sales tax.      Mr.  Mahajan  appearing  on  behalf  of  the  appellant sumbits that  the Court  should adopt  the meaning  given to these items in common parlance and by the people who use the articles. He  chiefly relies  upon a  decision of the Andhra Pradesh High  Court in The State of Andhra Pradesh v. Kajjam Ramchandraiah Gari  Anantaiah. In  that case  the High Court was dealing,  inter alia,  with  an  identical  item,  viz., dhania (coriander) under item 3 of Schedule IV of the Andhra Pradesh General  Sales Tax  Act, 1957.  Item 3  is identical with item  (vi) of  section 14 of the Central Act giving the definition of  "oil-seeds". The  Andhra Pradesh  High  Court relied upon  a letter  from the  Director  of  the  National Chemical  Laboratory,   Poona,  dated   January  29,   1959, addressed  to  the  Secretary,  Council  of  Scientific  and Industrial Research,  New Delhi, as also upon another letter from the  Central  Food  Technological  Research  Institute, Mysore, dated  February 18, 1959, and came to the conclusion that, amongst  other things, dhania (coriander) did not come "within the  definition of  oil seeds".  The High Court also held that it was not difficult to envisage with the increase in scientific  knowledge and  technological development that oil could  be extracted  from any  seed which  might not  be known as  an oil-seed  in common  parlance. That  Court also observed that there was no evidence to show that any oil was extracted in this country or that the oil extracted from the seeds concerned  was used  commercially or  industrially  or could be  bought in  the market.  In this view of the matter the Andhra  Pradesh High  Court held  that dhania  and other

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seeds which  came up  for consideration  were not  oil-seeds under item  3 of Schedule IV of the Andhra Pradesh Sales Tax Act. It  is interesting  that on  this finding of that Court coriander escaped altogether from assessment. 969      In Commissioner  of Sales  Tax, Madhya Pradesh, Indore, v. Bakhat  Rai and  Co., the  Madhya Pradesh High Court also took the  same view as that of the Andhra Pradesh High Court while dealing  with item  3, Part II, Schedule 1 of the C.P. and Berar  Sales  Tax  Act.  In  the  Madhya  Pradesh  case, however, the  term ’oil-seed’ has not been defined under the Act. The Court, therefore, held that since it was an item of every day  use it  must be construed in its popular meaning, that is  to say,  in that sense which people conversant with the subject  matter with which the statute was dealing would attribute to it.      The Division  Bench of  the Kerala  High Court has also held in  The Deputy  Commissioner of Agricultural Income-tax and Sales  Tax, Kozikode  v. V. Sreedhara Shenoy that dhania (coriander) and methi are not oil-seeds under section 14(vi) of the Central Act.      Mr. Mahajan has strenuously submitted that the articles in question  are spices  to all indents and purposes and not "oil-seeds". He  further submits  that even if they are oil- seeds in  the sense  that these  yield non-volatile oil to a certain  extent,  no  evidence  has  been  produced  by  the assessee that  these are  used for  human consumption  or in industry or  in the  manufacture of varnishes, soaps and the like,  or   in  lubrication,   or  in  medicines,  perfumes, cosmetics and the like as mentioned in the definition.      Mr. Gobind  Das, on  the  other  hand,  has  drawn  our attention to  the fact that the High Court had before it the Condensed Chemical Dictionary (7th Edition) edited by Arther and Elizabeth  Rose, from  which the  following informations regarding the seeds in question were available:-           "Dhania   (coriander    seed);   botanical    name      coriandrum sativem. Coriander oil is distilled from the      coriander sativum  a colourless  or slightly yellowish,      liquid having aromatic odour.           Jeera (cumin  seed); Cumin  oil is  distilled from      the cumin seed and is used for medicine, flavouring and      perfumery. It  is a  colourless  or  yellowish,  limpid      liquid having characteristic odour of cumin.           Postak  (poppy   seed);  botanical   name  papover      somniferum. Poppy  oil is  a very  pale, golden  yellow      liquid with pleasant taste and odour extracted from the      seeds and  it is  used as  food oil,  artist’s colours,      varnishes & lubrication.           Methi  (Fenugreek);   botanical  name   trigonella      Foenumgraecum (vide p. 164, vol. 9 of the Encyclopaedia      Britannica). It  is stated  inter alia  therein that it      bears a  sickle-shaped pod,  containing from  10 to  20      seeds, from which 6% of a foetid, fatty, and bitter oil      can be extracted by ether". Besides, the  High Court also had before it the notification of the  Ministry of Finance, Department of Economic Affairs, Government of  India, dated January 3, 1959, wherein amongst other commodities 970 the following  were stated  to be included in the term "oil- seeds" under item (vi) of section 14 of the Central Act:           "(18)Poppy-seed (Posta-dana, Khaskhas);           (37) Aniseed (saunf);           (42) Coriander-seeds (Dhania);           (44) Cuminseed (Jeera, Safed Jeera);

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         (49) Fenugreek-seeds (Methi)".      Mr. Gobind Das also drew our attention to the Webster’s Third  International  Dictionary  where  coriander  seed  is described as  "the ripened dried fruit of coriander used for flavouring especially  of pickels, curries, confectioneries, and liquors."      These appeals  arise out  of a  decision in a reference under section  24 of  the State Act under article 136 of the Constitution and  we have  to consider  whether it  is a fit case for  interference with the order of the High Court when it held  that the  Sales  Tax  Tribunal  was  right  in  its conclusion. It  is true  the High Court has rightly observed that the  aforesaid notification  of the Government of India has no  statutory force  and as  such is  not binding on the Sales Tax  Officer. It  cannot, however,  be denied that the Ministry of  Finance, Department  of  Economic  Affairs,  is intimately  conversant   not  only   with  the   policy   of legislation  for   the  purpose  of  implementation  of  the provisions of  the Central Act but is also familiar with the nature and quality of the commodities as also their use from time to  time. If,  therefore, such  an authority  issued  a notification including certain commodities under the head of ’oil-seeds’, as  defined under the Central Act, it cannot be said that  the Tribunal and the High Court were not right in preferring  such  an  opinion  of  the  Government  as  good evidence for  its conclusion, to the opinions relied upon by the Andhra  Pradesh High  Court on  which great reliance has been placed  by the  appellant. A persual of the contents of the letters  referred to  in  the  judgment  of  the  Andhra Pradesh High  Court would  indicate that the opinions cannot be said  to be  very firm or even final. Apart from this, it is not known whether all the uses which are mentioned in the definition of  "oil-seeds" were brought to the notice of the National Chemical  Laboratory, Poona and of the Central Food Technological Research Institute, Mysore, in rendering their opinions. If,  therefore, the  Tribunal  in  the  facts  and circumstances  of   the  case   held  that   the  particular commodities came  within the  definition of  clause (vi)  of section 14  of the  Central Act,  it is not possible to hold that it  was not  right. The answer to the first question by the High Court is, therefore, rightly in the affirmative.      We do  not also  see anything wrong in the High Court’s answering the second question in the way it did.      The appeals,  therefore, fail  and are dismissed. There will be no order as to costs.      We are  thankful to  Mr. Gobind  Das for  assisting the Court as amicus curaie. V.P.S.                                    Appeals dismissed. 971