Recently, the Madras High Court dealt with a petition filed by a Chennai-based partnership firm running a restaurant. The firm, which sells bakery products along with other food and drinks, sought exemption under the Tamil Nadu Value Added Tax Act, 2006, claiming that such items are covered under Entry 48 of Part B, Schedule III of the Act. The case drew attention as it questioned whether bakery products sold in a licensed snack bar fall within the statutory exemption for “food and drinks” in restaurants and other eating houses.
The petitioner argued that a similar issue had previously been decided by the Tamil Nadu Taxation Special Tribunal, which held that bakery products sold from a licensed restaurant qualified for exemption under the Government notification. The petitioners contended that their items should be treated similarly and that the Sales Tax Appellate Tribunal erred in rejecting their claim.
The State, however, countered that Entry 48 of Part B, Schedule III covers only specific beverages such as tea, coffee, and green tea, and does not extend to bakery products. According to the State, the appellate tribunal correctly interpreted the exemption provisions under the Act.
After examining the submissions, the Court concluded that bakery products fall under a different schedule in the TNVAT Act and are not included in the exemption notification. The court upheld the order of the appellate tribunal, confirming that the petitioner was not eligible for the claimed tax exemption. The writ petition was dismissed with no costs.
Case Title: Cakes N Bakes vs. The Commercial Tax Officer & Ors.
Case No.: W.P.No. 19651 Of 2007
Coram: Justice S.M.Subramaniam, Justice C.Saravanan
Counsel For The Petitioner: Adv.K.A.Parthasarathi
Counsel For The Respondents: Additional Government Pleader .C.Harsharaj
Picture Source :
