Dy. Commnr. Of Commercial Taxes (Vigil) vs M/S Hindustan Lever Ltd

The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the Karnataka High Court affirming the Karnataka Appellate Tribunal's ruling that Brooke Bond India Limited was not entitled to sales tax exemption under the Karnataka Sales Tax Act, 1957 due to violations of the conditions specified in the exemption notification dated 19.06.1991. The Court found that the company had effectively included a tax component in the sale price of tea packets from its Dharwad unit, contravening Explanation III(e) of the notification. Consequently, the appeal was dismissed, affirming the rejection of the exemption claim.