The main legal point established in the judgment is that each bottle given on lease constitutes a plant for the purpose of claiming depreciation, in line with the interpretation of the term 'plant' and the definition provided in the Income-tax Act.

ARIJIT PASAYAT, C. J.

( 1 ) IN this appeal under Section 260-A of the Income-tax Act 1961 (in short the Act) order of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal. New Delhi (in short Tribunal ) in ITA No. 6110/d/95 dated 16th December 1998 is under challenge, in respect of the question as regards the rate of depreciation on the bottles given on lease to another concern. The dispute relates to assessment year 1987-88.

( 2 ) FACTUAL position which is almost undisputed is as follows: Assessee company supplies bottles to other concerns on lease basis. For the relevant assessment year, depreciation was claimed on bottles valued of Rs. 14,99,508. 00/- @ 100%. However the assessing Officer allowed depreciation @ 15% under the first proviso to Section 32 (i) of the Act. For disallowing assessee s claim of depreciation @ 100%, it was observed that though bottles were plant, each bottle cannot constitute plant and only all the bottles which were acquired can be taken as plant. Reference was made to purchases on several dates to hold that the value of bottles, treated as "plant" purchased on the relevant dates exceeded Rs. 50003. 00. Ultimately he held that each bottle did not constitute a plant and all the bottles purchased by the assessee in bulk constituted a plant. To justify the conclusion, it was pointed out that bottles were supplied in bulk after they were purchased in bulk. The matter was carried in appeal before the Commissioner of Income-tax (Appeals) [in short the cit (A) ]. The matter initially was remitted for fresh adjudication by said authority and subsequently another order was passed. Assessing Officer held that the question would be different in case of bottling plant where the bottles are individually used and are capable of being used. In those circumstances an individual bottle separately constitutes plant. But in case of a leasing company, there is no actual or real use of the bottles in the hands of the owner. The bottles are used for leasing business and bottles are handled only in bulk and hence each bottle cannot be treated separately as a plant for allowance of depreciation @ 100%. First appellate authority i. e. C. I. T (A), upheld the view. Such conclusion was reversed by the Tribunal by the impugned order. It was held that (a) in case of a leasing company depreciation is allowable on the articles leased out, (b) each bottle for the purpose of first proviso to section 32 (i) (ii) constitutes a plant and not necessarily all the bottles purchased on a particular date in bulk.

( 3 ) LEARNED counsel for the Revenue submitted that question whether a particular bottle would constitute a plant would depend upon the nature of activities carried on by the assessee. In the case at hand the assessee being a leasing concern, each bottle cannot be construed to be a plant and only the bulk purchases made which were leased out can be treated as plant.

( 4 ) LEARNED counsel for the assessee on the other hand REFERRED TO the various decisions, more particularly, decision of this Court in Commissioner of Income-tax Vs. Prem Nath Monga Bottlers (P) Ltd. [1997] 226 I. T. R. 864 to contend that each bottle would constitute a plant.

( 5 ) SO far as the grant of depreciation on assets which are leased out is concerned, decision of the Apex Court in Commissioner of Income-tax Vs. Shaan Finance (P) Ltd. [1998] 231 I. T. R. 308 has set the controversy at rest. It was held that an asseessee is entitled to depreciation on the assets which were given on lease. The only question that needs adjudication, therefore, is whether each bottle would constitute a plant. This Court in Monga s case (Supra) held that even one bottle can constitute a plant. We find no distinction to be permissible, merely because the assessee was a leasing concern as contended by learned counsel for revenue. That would not really change the nature of the plant i. e. a single bottle. It has been accepted by the Revenue Authorities that bottles would constitute plant. There

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