Holding

The contract is a works contract for printing confidential question papers, with the supply of paper merely incidental; only the cost of paper is taxable, and printing and block‑making charges are exempt.

Summary

A. Viswanathan, a printer, entered into contracts with universities to print examination question papers. The demand notes itemised charges for printing, block making, packing, handling, delivery, postage and the value of paper separately. The Assessing Officer and later the Tribunal treated the printing and block‑making charges as part of the assessable turnover under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959, but the High Court held that the contract was essentially a works contract involving confidentiality, and only the cost of paper was liable to tax. On appeal, the Supreme Court examined whether the contract was a sale of goods or a contract for work, applying the test laid down in Government of Andhra Pradesh v. Guntur Tobaccos Ltd. The Court concluded that the contract was a work contract with the supply of paper incidental, so the printing and block‑making fees are exempt from sales tax. Consequently, the appeals were dismissed.

Issues considered

The nature of the contract between the printer and the universities – whether it is a contract for sale of goods or a contract for work and labour.
Whether printing and block‑making charges form part of assessable turnover under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959.
Whether the confidentiality of the question papers makes the transaction a works contract exempt from sales tax.

Legislation cited

Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959s. 2, s. 38

Subjects

Sales taxContract of workContract for salePrinting question papersConfidentialityComposite contractTamil Nadu General Sales Tax ActAssessable turnoverWorks contract

Judgment

STATE OF TAMIL NADU
A
v.
ANANDAM VISWANATHAN

JANUARY 24, 1989

[SABYASACHI MUKHARJI AND S. RANGANATHAN, JJ.] B

Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959: Assessee entered into
contract with Universities and educational institutions for printing ques-
tion papers.liability to sales tax-Nature of contract-Contract for work
and contract for labour and work-Difference between-Ascertainment
of intention of parties and nature of contract-Need for:
c
The respondent had entered into contracts with Universities and
other educational institutions for printing of question papers for them.
In the demand notes prepared the respondent gave the charges for
printing, blocks, packing handling, delivery, postal and also value of
paper and value of packing materials separately in the relevant assess- D
ment years. On re-examination the Assessing Officer noticed that print-
ing charges and block making charges escaped assessment and brought
them to tax.

In respect of subsequent assessment also claims for exemption
towards printing charges and block making charges were disallowed. E
The appeals preferred by the. Respondents were dismissed by the Appel-
late Assistant Commissioner, who reached a finding that the contracts
were only for supply of printed question paper as a finished product
and that there was no scope to disintegrate cost of paper with separate
~- charges for printing and block making though the bills were made out
in a different way. F

The respondent preferred appeals to Sales Tax Appellate Tri-
bunal. The Tribunal held that the respondent was assessable only on the
sale value of paper and that printing and block making charges were
not to be included in the assessment.
G
Against the Tribunal's Orders, the appellant preferred tax cases
before the High Court. The High Court dismissed the cases and held
that the contract between the assessee and the Universities is of highly
confidential nature and that the printing of question papers could be
entrusted only to those in whom the institutions got_ the highest confi-
dence, and that the price paid for such confidentiality and trust is not H
301
302 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] I S.C.R.

the price for the sale of goods.
A I

The present appeals by Special Leave are against the High
Court's Orders.

In this appeal, it was argued on behalf of the appellant that print-
B ing charges and block making charges are includible in the assessable )(~
turnover of the Respondent. On behalf of the Respondent it was argued
that the contract entered into between her and the educational institu-
!ions was a contract of work and labour and in the performance of the
contract, indicentally she had to sell paper to them and hence except to
the extent of the cost of paper she was not liable to pay sales tax in -~-:t
respect of the other amounts receive by her.
c
Dismissing the appeals, ~~

HELD: I . I Contract for work in the execution of which goods are
used may take one of three forms. The contract may be for work to be
D done for remuneration and for supply of material used in the execution
of works in which the use of materials is accessory or incidental to the
execution cf the work; or it may be a contract for work and use or
supply of materials, though not accessory to the execution of the con-
tract, is voluntary or gratuitous. In the last class there is no sale because ~-
though property passed it did not pass for a price. Whether a contract is
E of the first or the second class must depend upon the circumstances; if it
is of the first, it is a composite contract for work and sale of goods;
where it is of the second category, it is a contract for execution of work ..l
not involving sale of goods. [307H; 308A-B]
-
..

~
1.2 In each case the nature of the contract and the transaction
F must be found out. And this is possible only when the intention of the
parties is found out. The fact that in the execution of a contract for
work some materials are used and the property /goods so used, passes to
(
the other party, the contractor undertaking to do the work will not
necessarily be deemed, on that account, to sell the materials. Whether
or not and which part of the job work relates to that depends on the
G nature of the transaction. [316G-H]

I .3 Normally, it may be that the goods prepared by the assessee
y....,
which could not be exhibited for sale, would not be decisive of the
matter and could in certain circumstances be sales liable to sales tax,
but in all circumstances it depends upon the nature of the sale and the
H nature of the transaction involved. Printing of question papers at the
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VJSWANATHAN 303

behest of University or educational institutions is rather a delicate and A
confidential type of work and the price paid for supplying such printed
question papers or printed matters entails primarily the confidence,
and secondly the skill and to a very small measure the material. If that
is the position, it cannot he categorised as entailing sale of goods but it is
rather a contract for works done. [309G-H; 3IOA]
B
Government of A.P. v. Guntur Tobaccos Ltd., XVISTC 240
relied on.

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. v. State of Kerala, [1984] ISCC 706
and P. T. Varghese v. State of Kera/a, 37 STC ll71 approved.

Saraswati Printing Press v. CST, Eastern Division Nagpur. X C
STC 286 and State of A.P. v. Sri Krishna Power Press, Vizianagaram,
XI STC498.

P.M. Venkatachalam Pillai v. State of Madras, XXIII STC 72;
State ofOrissa v. Ramnath Panda, XXVII STC 98; S.R.l'. Woiksand D
Ruby Press v. State of A.P., XXX STC l95 and STD, Special Circle II.
Pa lg hat v. /. V. Somasundaram, 33 STC /is .
. ( A.S. Hameed Bharath Press v. State of Tamil Nadu, 54 STC 379;
>· CSTv. Uma Art Press, 56 STC 300; Chandra Bhan Gosain.v. State of
Orissa, XIV STC 766; CST v. Mis Sabarmati Reti Udyog Sanakari E
Mandali Ltd .. 38 STC 203 and Marcel (Furriers) Ltd. v. Tapper. [1953]
l ·WLR 49 referred to.

2.1 The primary difference between a contract for work or
service and a contract for sale is that in the former there is in the person
performing or rendering service no property in the thing produced as a F
whole, notwithstanding that a part or even the whole of the material
used by him may have been his property. Where tbe finished product
supplied to a particular customer is not a commercial commodity in the
sense that it cannot be sold in the market to anv other person, the
transaction is oi.ly a works contract. [316EI .
G
2.2 When the questions are set on a piece of paper and sent for
printing, the University remains the owner until it divulges these to the
intending candidates or the students. But that is a matter which is
relevant in the method of communication of the question to the candi'
dates appearing in the examination. The means employees for such
communication entail use of mind, confidence, trust for the material, H
304 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] 1 S.C.R.

paper and the technical sklll of printing. It is a combination of these
A
various factors that results in printing the question papers and the
payment made in the process entails a composite payment for all these.
Question papers as such, after being printed are neither available com-
mercially nor available to any community--<:ommercial or otherwise
save under specific circumstances for the candidates appearing at a
B particular time in an examination. [3080-E; 309C I

Court Press Job Branch, Salem v. State of Tamil Nadu, 54 STC
382 and CST v. M. P. V. Raina Fine Arts Printing Press, 56 STC 77
approved.

State of Madras v. Cannan Dunkerlay & Co. (Madras) Ltd.,
c IX STC 353; Patnaik & Co. v. State of Orissa, XVI STC 364 and
T. V. Sundaram Iyengar & Sons v. State of Madras, 35 STC 24 referred
to.

. 3. The contract in the present case is one, having regard to the
D nature of the job to he done and the confidence reposed, for work to he
done for remuneration and supply for paper was just incidental. Hence,
the entire price for the printed question papers would have been
entitled to be excluded from the taxable turnover, but since the demand
notes prepared by the assessee showed the costs of paper separately, it ·--*
appears that it has treated the supply of paper separately. Except the
E materials supplied on the basis of such contract, the contract will con-
tinue to be a contract for work and labour and no liability to sales tax
would arise in respect thereof. [317 A-Cl

CIVIL APPELLATE JURISDICTION: Civil Appeal Nos.
2346-47 of 1978 Etc.
F
From the Judgment and Orders dated 5.8.1976 of the Madras
High Court in T.C. Nos. 436 and 437 of 1971.

R. Mohan and R.A. Perumal for the Appellant. ,

G T.A. Ramachandran and Mrs. Janaki Rarnachandran for the
Respondents.

The Judgment of the Court was delivered by

SABYASACHI MUKARJI, J. Special leave granted in Special
H Leave Petitions (C) Nos. 10539, 4704 and 921of1979.
STATE OF TAMIL. NADU v. A. VISWANATHAN [MUKHARJI, J.] 305

These appeals by leave under Article 136 of the Constitution, are A
from the orders of the High Court of Madras, involving a common
question though for different assessment years. · It would be
appropriate to deal with Civil Appeal Nos. 2346-47/78, and the facts in
other appeals are essentially the same.

The assessee in these cases had entered into contracts with the B
Universities and other educational institutions in the country for print-
ing question papers for the said educational institutions. The assessee
in the demand notes prepared, gave the charges for printing blocks,
packing charges, handling charges, delivery charges, postage, value of
paper and value of packing materials separately in the relevant assess-
ment years. The question involved is, whether the taxable turnover
should also include the printing and block-making charges or not. It C
a,ppears from the judgment of the High Court that for the assessment
year 1966-67, the printing charges amounted to Rs.99,675.00
and block-making charges amounted to Rs.2,923.95, totalling
Rs.l,02,598.95. Similarly, so far as the assessment year 1968-69 is
concerned, the printing charg~s amounted to Rs.1,33, 137 and block- I)
making charges amounted to Rs.5,36L 75 totalling Rs.1,38,498. 75.

The COf!troversy involved in these appeals was_, whether these
two amounts were includible in the assessable turnover of the respon-
dent in the respective years in question. The case of the assessee was
that the contract entered into be~een her and the respective educa- E ,,i-
tional institutions was a contract ·of work and labour and in the
performance of that contract, .incidentally she had to sell paper to
them and, hence, except to the extent of the cost of paper, in respect of
the other amounts received by her she was not liable to pay sales-tax.
On the other hand, the Government's stand was that the contract was
for.the sale of printed materials by the respondent to the respective F
aducational institutions and, therefore, the entire amount will have to
be taken.into account as turnover liable to tax. In other words, would
printing question papers and incidentally supplying the papers upon
which such questions were printed, entail the entire cost to be liable to
sales-tax, As was put before us, the question is, can one sell printed
question papers and charge for the same? G

~ The High Court mentioned that till 1963 the assessee was herself
doing the printing and the Tribunal held that during that period only
the cost of paper was includible in the taxable turnover. With effect
from 3.11.1963 the printing was done by a firm of which the assessee's
sons and daughters were partners. The contract, however, continued H
306 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] I S.C.R.

to be entered into between the assessee and the respective educational
A
institutions. According to the Govt., as appears from the judgment of
the High Court, this made a difference and, as such, the order of the
Tribunal in the previous years could not govern the assessment for the
respective years referred to above.

B The Tribunal, however, held against the revenue holding that
only the value of paper was liable to be included in the taxable
turnover of the assessee. The correctness of that decision was chal-
lenged before the High Court by two Revision Cases under section 38
of the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959 (hereinafter called 'the
Act'). The High Court on an analysis of the facts and the several
decisions came· to the conclusion that printing of question papers
c involved confidentiality of the materials to be printed, and held that
apart from the paper nothing else could be included in the total taxable
turnover of the assessee. The High Court came to the conclusion that
the contract entered into between the assessee and the University and
other edncational institutions was a composite contract i.e:, a contract
D for work and labour' as well as a contract for sale of the paper. It was
contended on behalf of the revenue that in case of sale of all printed
materials, the sales-tax was liable on the entire work. In that view of
the matter if the liability for sale of printed material would include the
entire price then there was no authority, according to the revenue, to
treat the question papers differently. It is, however, clear as the High
E Court noted, that the printng of question papers of educational institu-
tions was an extremely and highly confidential matter. ·This is the first
aspect of the matter which must be borne in mind. It was efuphasised
that such printing could not be entrusted to any press of one's choice,
and the Universities and other educatioal institutions were only
obliged to enter into such contracts with those in whom they have got
F the highest confidence so that the printer would not divulge the ques-
tions to be printed by him/her and will preserve the confidential nature
of the transaction. Therefore, in printing question papers entrusted by
educational institutions to the printer the value included the price of
the confidentiality and the confidence reposed in the printer. It has to
be borne in mind that the price paid for such confidentiality and trust is
G not the price for the sale of goods. In case of printing of other mate-
rials just like letter-heads, bills, account books or even printing works
like a novel, story, poem or drama (subject to copyrights), the techni-
cal excellence and the professional efficiency of the printer, among
other things, might enter into calculation for entrusting the job to a
particular printer and the performance thereof. However, the position
H is different in case of printing of confidential matters like question
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VISWANATHAN IMUKHARJI, J.I 307

-J- papers of the Universities or other educational institutions. The value
A
paid for such printing job includes to a large extent the price of not
only the technical and professional work but also the value, if it could
be measured in terms of money, of the confidence and faith reposed
that the printing materials should not be disclosed to anyone save to be
returned back to the University or the educational institutions to be-
'")( dealt with in accordance with its obligations. B

The High Court noticed these points and came to the conclusion
that in view of these peculiar features which will be present in the
~·· printing of matters which are confidential in nature and will not be .
present in other case the contracts pre-dominantly being contracts for
work with confidence and faith, should be treated mainly as contracts
for labour and not contracts for sale of any goods such as printed c
~-,..
materials. It may be that in the execution of the contracts and for the
purpose of completing the work, the parties might enter into the con-
tracts for sale of the paper and in this context, it was a composite
contract which. can be split up into contract for sale of paper and
contract for work and labour. D

Relying on a decision of this Court in Govt. of Andhra Pradesh v.
Guntur Tobaccos Ltd., XVI STC 240, the High Court was of the view
•).-. that the cost of paper shown separately in the contract would be liable
to tax and except for that cost of paper and the material supplied in
other respect, the contract was a contract for work and labour and E
there could not be any liability for sales-tax. According to the High
Court, this would cover the printing charges. Blocks, it was found,
were destroyed after the question papers had been printed. Hence,

~-
there was no question of sale of blocks or passing of the property. The
High Court so held.
F
Following the aforesaid position in other matters which are the
subject-matters of other al}Peals where the High Court held accord-
ingly, it dismissed the revision application of the revenue. Aggrieved
thereby, the appellant has come up to this Court by leave.

Our attention was drawn by both Mr. Mohan, learned counsel G
for the appellant and Mr. Ramchandran, counsel for the respondent to
~
the decision of this Court in Govt. of Andhra Pradesh v. Guntur
Tabacco Ltd., (supra), where this Court laid down that a contract for
work in the execution of which goods are used may take one of three
forms. The contract may be for work to be done for remuneration and
for supply of materials used in the execution of the works for a price; it H
308 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] 1 S.C.R.

may be a contract for work in which the use of materials is accesssory
A
or incidental to the execution of the work; or it may be a contract for
work and use or supply of materials, though not accessory to the
execution of the contract, is voluntary or gratuitous. In the last class
there is no sale because though property passed it did not pass for a
price. Whether a contract is of the first or the second class must
B depend upon the circumstances; if it is of the first, it is a composite
contract for work and sale of goods; where it is of the second category,
it is a contract for execution of work not involving sale of goods.

In our opinion, the aforesaid tests lay down correct criteria for
determining the question. Mr. Mohan, appearing for the revenue,
pressed before us th"! the said principle requires clarification. He
c emphasised that Press has no ownership over the materials or papers
upon which the questions were printed. Who then, Mr. Mohan posed,
was the owner, author or the paper setter of the University or the
educational institution or the printing Press? In our opinion, when the
questions are set on a piece of paper and sent for printing the
D University remains the owner until it divulges these to the intending
candidates or the students. But that is a matter which is relevant in the
method of communication of the questions to the candidates appearing
in the examination. The means employed for such communication
entail use of mind, confidence, trust for the material, paper and the
technical skill of printing. It is a combination of these various factors
E that results in printing the question papers and the payment made in
the process entails a composite payment for all these and can only be
dissected and determined in the way laid down by the principle enun-
ciated in the afroesaid decision.

F
Our attention was, however, drawn by Mr. Mohan to a decision
of the Bombay High Court in Saraswati Printing Press v. Commis-
1
sioner of Sales Tax, Eastern Division, Nagpur, X STC 286. There the
petitioner Press itself purchased the stationery and did printing work
upon it according to the orders of individual customers and supplied
the printed stationery to the customers. It was held that there the
petitioner had produced a commercial commodity which was capable
G of being sold or supplied and when the petitioner sold the printed
stationery to its customers, it sold goods to the customers upon which .~
sales tax was leviable. In those circumstances, it was held that the
transactions done by the said petitioner Press were not in the nature of
works contracts but were sales of goods and therefore recourse to rule
5(3) of the rules could not be made. It was further held that as the
H petitioner did not immediately dispose of the stationery purchased by
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VISWANATHAN IMUKHARJI, J.I 309

it in favour of its constituents, but kept it in the Press and did printing
A
work upon it and then supplied the finished product to its constituents,
the provisions of clause (iv) of Explanation I of clause (m) of section 2
were not attracted.

The High Court relied on the decision of the Allahabad High
Court reiterating the principle that it is necessary to determine the B
substance of tl\e contract, and as the substance of the contract is that
skill and labour that had been exercised for the production of the article
and sale of material is only ancillary to that. In our opinion, the princi-
ple upon which the High Court relied, is not applicable in case of
transactions of printing of question papers. Question papers as such,
after being printed are neither available commercially nor available to
any community-commercial or otherwise, save under specific
c
circumstances for the candidates appearing at a particular time in an
examination. Mr Mohan also drew our attention to the decision of
Andhra Pradesh High Court in State of Andhra Pradesh v. Sri Krishna
Power Press, Vizianagaram, XI STC 498. There, the court reiterated
that a transaction which results in the transfer of property in finished D
goods to another person cannot be described as a works contract. It
was further held that where the assessee Press itself purchased station-
ery and did printing work upon it according to the orders of individual
customers and supplied the printed stationery to the customers at an
agreed price the transaction was sales liable to sales tax and not works
contract. The fact that the goods prepared by the assessee could not be E
exhibited for sale to the general public is not decisive of the issue ..
According to the High Court the only test is whether the contract is for
the sale of finished product. Mr. Mohan relying on the aforesaid ob-
servations submitted that the goods prepared by the assessee could not
be sold to other customers, the person who placed order could be
compelled to accept it or claim damages from the printers. He submit- F
ted that even in a case where goods are prepared according to the
specific requisition to suit the requirements of individual customer, yet
printing materials supplied thereto have been held to be sale of goods
and he drew our attention to the several decisions referred to by the
High Court of Andhra Pradesh in aid of his propositions. Normally, it
may be that the goods prepared by the assessee which could not be G
exhibited for sale, would not be decisive of the matter and could in
certain circumstances be sales liable to sales tax, but in all circum-
stances it depends upon the nature of the sale and the nature of the
transaction involved. Printing of question papers at the behest of
University or educational instituions is rather a delicate and confiden-
tial type of work and the price paid for supplying such printed question H
310 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] 1 S.C.R.

A papers or printed matters entails primarily the confidence, and ,j.
secondly the skill and to a very small measure the material. If that is
the position then, in our opinion, it cannot be categorised entailing
sale of goods but it is rather a contract for works done.

Mr. Mohan also relied on the decision of the Madras High Court
B
in P.M. Venkatachalam Pillai v. The State of Madras, XXIII STC 72,
where it was held that when a transaction is claimed· to be a works
contract, a decision on the question depends on the particular facts.
The primary point to bear in mind in such cases is what is the intention
of the parties viewing the transaction as a whole; do they intend an
apportionment or view the transaction on compartmental basis as that
C which represents labour and that which represents sale of the mate-
rials. Different tests may be applied in answering such a question as
the stage of passing of property, risk and the like. But all these tests -..,/
\
converge towards finding out what is the intention of the parties.
There, the question was whether the assessee's turnover consisted of
D the aggregate of labour charges and the cost of materials in printing
work or of outright sales of finished commodity. The assessee relied on
certain bills which showed the cost of materials and labour charges but
he did not produce order books or other documents. The Tribunal
found that the separate entries were only a make-believe apportion-
ment for the purpose of sales tax and that what was sold was only a
finished product. In those findings the Tribunal justified on the mate-
E rials to uphold the liability for sales-tax. As emphasised by the Divi-
sion Bench of the Madras High Court, the entire transaction should be
viewed and the intention of the parties found out.

Our attention was drawn by Mr. Mohan to the decision of the
F Orissa High Court in the case of State of Orisssa v. Ramnath Panda,
XXVII STC 98. There the High Court held that in the case of an
assessee, a printer supplying printed materials, where the customers
supply paper and the assessee does nothing except printing on it, the
contract is one of labour and there is no sale. Where the customer
enters into an agreement that he would separately pay for the paper
G and the assessee would merely print on it, then also there is no sale.
Where the customer does not enter into any separate agreement but
merely asks the assessee to supply the printed materials, the contract is
indivisible and the supply of printed materials is a sale liable to sales
tax. In such a case charging separately for the paper and printing in the
bill issued to the customer does not alter the essential character of the
H agreement, which is for the purchase of printed materials.
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VISWANATHAN [MUKHARJI, J.J 311

Our attention was also drawn to another decision of Andhra A
Pradesh High Court in S.R.P .. Works and Ruby Press v. State of
Andhra Pradesh, XXX STC 195. There, the petitioner was running a
printing press, supplying cinema tickets printed on paper of different
colours to the customers. The customers obtained samples from the
petitioner and then placed orders giving specifications. The petitioner
while making out bills, gave break-up figures, showing the cost of B
paper and the cost of printing separately and the total cost. The asses-
sing authority assessed the petitioner only on the value of the paper for
printing the tickets and granted exemption in respect of printing
charges on the ground that they represented the cost of labour. The
Deputy Commissioner revised the order and held ihat the transactions
involved were sales of finished goods, vii.; !he tiekeis; and lidt merely
of paper. The Tribunal agreed with the finding of the Deputy Commis-
c
sioner and confirmed the order. On a revision it was held by the High
Court on a consideration of some of the orders placed by the custo-
mers, that the orders were specifically for printing and supply of
tickets. The fact that break-up figures were given in the bills was not
decisive or conslusive in determining the question whether there were D
two contracts-one for supply of paper and the other for printing.

We agree that the transaction under its true perspective must be
viewed and the intention of the parties must be found out.

Our attention was draWfi to tlie deeision of Ifie High' Goutf of E
K.etala in The Sales Tax Officer, Special Cfrtle 11, f>dlgizat v .. lv.
S01nast1ndarlin, 33 STC 68. In that case by printing something on
papet,. as in .the cases of printing letter heads,_ invitation cards, wedding
invitations, judgments of courts, or ration cards, tile ptinfed matter
does not become "paper products" within tne· meaning of that expres~
sion in' item 42 of Schedule I to the Ketala General Sales Tax Act; F
1963. The High Court found tliat in such a case a futthet question
arises as to whether it was sale of goods which could l'ie faxed ilf a:ii
points. In order to spell out a contract of sale there mu'Sf be an agree'-'
ment which may be express or inferred from the circumsiances. There
can be an agreement for work and labour or there can be one for sale
of goods. If essentially the agreement is one for work and labour, G
complete exemption from taxation should be allowed. If, on the other
-1.: hand, it is a contract for sale, the whole turnover should be taxed.

A contract for printing ' of judgment of courts is essentially a
contract for work and !about and there is no justification for bifurcat-
mg that contract i'nti'f two diffefert't conftactS, 6ne· for cost of !about and J-1
312 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989) 1 S.C . R.

A the other for sale of paper. Imposition of sales tax on the turnover
relating to printing of judgments of courts is, therefore, unwarranted.
In the case of contracts relating to the printing of ration cards, it is in
1
the nature of job-works and it is essentially a contract for the sale of
finished articles.

B In P. T. Varghese v. State of Kera/a, 37 STC 171, the assessee who
was conducting a press and printing bill books, vouchers, receipt
*
books, letter heads, question papers and notices as ordered by his
clients contended that he only executed a works contract for which he
used his own paper, that the sale of paper used for printing could not
be taxed under the Kerala General Sales Tax Act, 1963, as he was not
the first seller of paper in the State, and that the remuneration
c received by him from his clients for the work and labour could nQt also
, I

be taxed under the Act. It was held that the question really was
whether the contract was for the sale of paper as well as for work and
--,(
labour or whether it was a contract for printed materials as such or
whether it was a contract for work and labour. If it was a contract for
D sale of paper and for work it would be a composite contract where it
might be possible to separate the sale from the work. If, on the other
hand, it was a contract for printed materials, what was sold was not
paper, but printed materials. If the contract was for work and labour,
in which the use of materials was merely accessory or incidental, it
would be a works contract which would not involve any sale and the
E charges received would not be assessable to tax under the Sales Tax
Act; and that the assessee's contract with the customers was not a
contract for sale of paper in which labour was also involved making it a
composite transaction which was capable of bifurcation into a contract
for sale of materials and a contract for work and labour. What was sold
was something other than paper. It could not be said that printed
F materials such as bills books, vouchers and the like were mere paper or
products of paper. Hence, the supply of bills books, vouchers etc. was
liable to be taxed under the Act as finished products. It was further
held that the question papers, however, were the subject-matter of a
contract for work and labour and the charges realised by the assessee
for printing them were not liable to tax. The High Court at page 176 of
G the report observed:

"Only in respect of those goods to which title has passed as )._
a result of contract, can it be said that the goods have been
sold. Where a person buys a "Picasso" or a "Ravi Varma",
he does not intend to buy or pay for the canvas or the paint,
H although canvas and paint are involved in the production of
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VISWANATHAN [MUKHARJI, J.l 313

the painting, and title to such materials is transferred to A
him. But such transfer of title to the materials is not
pursuant to any agreement for the sale of the materials as
such. It would never have been in his mind to pay sepa-
rately for the materials and for the Jabour. What the buyer
buys is a finished product which is a work of art. On the
B
other hand, when a person gets his manuscript printed as
an article or a book of verses, the printer does no more
than a mechanical or technical job. The printer does not
create the article or the poem, but merely renders his
services to print which is in the nature of a job-work. The
~·· manuscript as such is the result of the skill, industry and
scholarship of the author. In such a case, there is no sale of C
the article or book by the printer; nor would it be possible
in such a case to spell out an agreement for the sale of
materials such as paper or ink, which may have been inci-
dentally used in the production of the printed work. While
the painter sells a finished product which is a work of art,
D
quite distinct and different from the materials used in its
production, the printer merely does a job-work involving
no sale; one is the work of an artist who is endowed with
the finer qualities of imagination and taste and the other
that of aD" artisan who is trained as a mechanic or techni-
cian. A printer of judgments, for example, does not pro-
E
duce and sell them; his work is purely that of a technician.
This court has therefore held that printing of judgments is
only a works contract. The work of a printer in certain
cases may involve more than printing; he may be a pro-
ducer of finished articles such as bill books, vouchers and
the like. When such articles are printed and sold to the
F
customers, what is sold is not paper or paper products but
printed materials which are finished products. Such con-
tracts cannot be considered as contracts for the sale of
paper coupled with an agreement to render service. The
sale of paper had never been the subject-matter of the
agreement between the parties. Like in the case of painting
which is a finished product being a work of art, the bill G
books and voucher are new products being printed mate-
rials; and the sale of such goods does not involve a compo-
site cotract which can be bifurcated into an agreement for
the sale of goods-be they canvas and paint or paper and
ink-and an agreement for work."
H
314 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] 1 S.C.R.

A In our opinion, the High Court rightly applied the test in that
case. Further, our attention was drawn by Mr. Mohan to a decision of
the Madras High Court in A.S. Hameed Bharath Press v. State of
Tamil Nadu, 54 STC 379. There, the Tribunal found that the contracts
between the assessee and his customers were indivisible contracts
under which the assessee undertook to deliver printed material in
B accordance with the customer's instructions and therefore considered
the receipts in the assessee's business as representing turnover in sales 1'\
of goods taxable under the Tamil Nadu General Sales Tax Act, 1959,
and that the order form was a make-believe and did not reflect the real
nature of the transactions between the assessee and his customers. It -J.
was held that given the finding by the Tribunal, the printed conditions ~
C in the order form were not to be accepted at face value and that the
transactions between the assessee and the customers involved only the
supply of printed material at a price. The High Court held that the -.,/
decision of the Tribunal that the entire receipts in the assessee's busi-
ness must be held to be sales turnover liable to tax under the Act must
be upheld.
D
As mentioned hereinbefore, the High Court was dealing entirely
with sample printed materials of order forms of bill books. The
Allahabad High Court had to consider this question in Commissioner
of Sales Tax v. Uma Art Press, 56 STC 300. The decision in that case
rested on the facts of that case and in the nature of the contentions
E urged before us in this case, it would not be relevant to discuss the said
decision in greater details.

In Chandra Bhan Gosain v, The State of Orissa & Ors., XIV STC
766 at 769, it was reiterated that in case of a composite contract how to
detetinine whether there was sale of goods or there was works to be
F dtine depended upon the facts of each case, and the intention of the
patties, what was the essence of the contract has to be found out. This
court had to consider in C.S. T., Gujaratv. M/s. Sabarmati Reti Udyog
Sahakari Mandali Ltd., 38 STC 203, whether the contract was a works
contract or contract for sale. There the assessee had entered into a
contract with the Public Works Department of the Govt. of Gujarat
G for the manufacture and supply of kiln-burnt bricks to that depart-
ment. The contract was found to oe in a tender "for supply of mate-
rials" containing a memorandum of the conditions. The nature of the
work was described as "manufacturing and supplying kiln-burnt bricks
for construction". In the tender the assessee stated the condition and
analysing the decision in the light of Chandra Bhan Gosain's case, this
H Court held that die contract was one for sale and not a works contract.
. -..,_ ,,
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v._A. VISWANATI!AN [MUKHARJI, J.) _ 315
·-------~

Mr. Mohan further drew our attention to the observations of the
A
English decision in Marcel (Furriers) Ltd. v:·Tapper, [19531 I WLR49.
There, the defendant, on behalf of his wife, 'ordered from the plain-
tiffs, a firm of furriers, a mutation mink coat. The defendant's wife
selected skins of the colour she desired and specified the style of the
coat she required, directing that it should be made with ·the skins
running horizontally. Her instructions were carried out, but the coat B
was eventually rejected by her. The plaintiffs brought an action against
the defendant claiming £950 for work done and materials supplied in
the making of the coat. By his defence the defendant pleaded that the
contract was one for the sale of goods of the value of£ 10 or over and
was unenforceable pursuant to section 4 of the· Sale of Goods Act,·
1893 of England by reason of the fact that there was no note. oi
memorandum in writing of the contract signed by the party to be C
charged or his agent. It was held that although a high degree of skill
and craftsmanship might be required in making of the-·coat; the con-.
tract was no more than one for the making of an article for the special
use of the customer by someone whose business it was to make it. The_
nature of the transaction, therdore, was that it was one for the making -·n
and supply of a particular article at a price and not one for work and
labour done and materials supplied, and there being no memorandum
in writing tQ satisfy the reqµirements pf section 4 of the Sale of Goods
Act, 1893, the contract was unenforceable. Hence, the principle
following from the decision is that the nature of transaction has to be
found out, whether it is making and supply of p;irticular article or E
printing waterial. . .

Mr, Ramchandran, Jiowever, submitted before us that in view of
the principles laid down by this Court in The State of Madras v.
Gannon Dunkerley & Co, (Madras) Ltd., IX STC 353 and Hindustan
Aeronautics Ltd. v, State ofKarnataka, 55 STC 314, the High Court F
was right. He submitted that the contract in essence was for supply of
question papers which are not commercial commodities, The blank
papers ceased to be the property of the pealer, t!ie momeµt questions_
were printed on these, These are the exclusive properties of the
University or other ec;!ucational institutions, and were to be kept se-cret
until the University chose IP divulge these at the time of the e·xamina' G
tions. The dealer cannot deal wit1i t!te printeq question papers, Upo11
}.. printing he lost his capacity to contract, ceaseg to he !lw ~'* PWner,
and could no\ sell \p !lnYPPclY Jie chO§!!, He hl!'1 to haml·gver -lh~
entirn question papers to tqi;: University, It was <! special lo;iml pf jq\l
entrusted for conficle!'Ce repose!! i!Pcl for t!ie lle!icat~ Pa\t!f~ pf the jq\l
to be performed. The work: in connection t1ierewith w11s pre<;lomi!iantly H
316 SUPREME COURT REPORTS [1989] l S.C.R.

A in the transaction. The material and the skill in doing so, both are ~
incidental. In that view of the matter he submitted that the High Court
was right, and indeed a contract for sale pre-supposes the capacity in
the dealer to contract with regard to the finished item. For this,
reliance was placed on the observations of this Court in The State of
Madras's case (supra), and also on Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd's case
B
(supra) at pages 320, 323 & 327. The thing produced must have indi- )
vidual existence as the sole property of the party who produced it,
which can be passed on for a price, in order to be a sale. Reliance was
placed on the observations in Patnaik & Co. v. The State of Orissa,
XVI STC 364 and T. V. Sundram Iyengar & Sons v. The State of
Madras, 35 STC 24 .. The test is whether work and labour are bestowed
c on anything that can properly become the subject of sale.
The court has to find out the primary object of the transaction
..,
and intention of t,he parties. In this connection, it is necessary to rely
on the observations of this Court in Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd's case
(supra) at pages 327, 333-334 of the report.
D
The primary difference between a contract for work or service
and a contract for sale is that in the former there is in the person
performing or rendering service no property in the thing produced as a
whole, notwithstanding that a part or even the whole of the material )
used by him may have been his property. Where the finished product
E
supplied to a particular customer is not a commercial commodity in the
sense that it cannot be sold in the market to any other person, the
transaction is only a works contract. See the observation in The Court
Press Job Branch, Salem v. The State of Tamil Nadu, 54 STC 383 and
Commissioner of Sales Tax, M.P. v. Ra(na Fine Arts Printing Press, 56
STC77.
F

In our opinion, in each case the nature of the contract and the
transaction must be found out. And this is possible only when the
intention of the parties is found out. The fact that in the execution of a
contract for work some materials are used and the property/goods so
G used, passes to the other party, the contractor undertaking to do the
work will not necessarily be deemed, on that account, to sell the
materials. Whether or not and which part of the job work relates to ?
that depends as mentioned hereinbefore, on the nature of the transac-
tion. A contract for work in the execution of which goods are used may
take any o_ne of the three forms as mentioned by this Court in The
H Government of Andhra Pradesh v. Guntur Tobaccos (supra).
STATE OF TAMIL NADU v. A. VISWANAlHAN IMUKHARJI, J.I 317

In our opinion, the contract in this case is one, having regard to A
the nature of the job to be done and the confidence reposed, for work
to be done for remuneration and supply of paper was just incidental.
Hence, the entire price for the printed question papers would have
been entitled to be excluded from the taxable turnover, but since in
the instant case the deemed notes prepared by the assessee showed the
B
costs of paper separately, it appears that it has treated the supply of
paper separately. Except the materials supplied on the basis of such
contract, the contract will continue to be a contract for work and
labour and no liability to sales-tax would arise in respect thereof. The
High Court was, therefore, right in the view it took in Civil Appeals
Nos. 2346-2347/78.
c
The facts in the other appeals are identical.

All these appeals are dismissed accordingly but without, in the
facts and circumstances of the case, any order as to costs.
D
G.N. Appeals dismis~ed.