Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax (Law), Board of Revenue (Taxes) vs K.K. Ummer Koya and Co.

K.S. Paripoornan, J.—The Revenue is the petitioner herein. The respondent-assessee is a dealer in timber. We are concerned with the assessment year 1981-82. The respondent purchased timber and converted them into sizes and scantlings. The assessing authority brought to tax the purchase value of such timber u/s 5A of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act. The Appellate Tribunal, following the decision of the Supreme Court in State of Orissa v. Titaghur Paper Mills Co. Ltd. [1985] 60 STC 213 held that the purchase value of timber could not be assessed to tax in the instant case u/s 5A of the Act. The Revenue has come up in revision.

We heard counsel for the Revenue, Mr. Nambiar. In identical circumstances, a Bench of this Court in Deputy Commissioner of Sales Tax v. Kunhalavi & Co. 1987 KLT 317 has held that the purchase value of timber cannot be brought to tax u/s 5A of the Kerala General Sales Tax Act. It was held that the sizes, scantlings, etc., of timber are the same as timber logs and therefore the purchase value of the said timber could not be brought to tax u/s 6A of the Act. In view of the decision of the Supreme Court reported in Titaghur Paper Mills Co. Ltd. case [1985] 60 STC 213 and the Bench decision of this Court in Kunhalavi & Co. case [1987] 66 STC 100 : 1987 KLT 317, we are of the view that the decision of the Appellate Tribunal, dated 8th September, 1986, is justified in law.

No interference is called for in the said decision. We dismiss the tax revision case in limine.