Per M.V.R. Prasad, Accountant Member - These four appeals were heard together and are disposed of by this common order.

2. These appeals are directed against the consolidated order of the CIT(A) dated 9-7-1999 for the assessment years 1995-96 to 1998-99 upholding the orders under sections 201(1) and 201(1A) of the Income-tax Act holding that the assessee should have deducted tax at source from the payments made to the following eight parties at 20 per cent under the provisions of section 194-I in each of the concerned years :

(1)Acme Industrial Corporation

(2)The Jai Hind Oil Mills

(3)Jayant Oil Mills

(4)Shah Kanji Narshi

(5)Petrochem Services

(6)Aegis Chemicals Inds. Ltd.

(7)Tirupati Inds. Ltd.

(8)V.V.F. Ltd.

3. The assessee manufactures and trades in lubricant oils. For this purpose it imports base oil. It is required to store lubricant and base oil during the course of the business. For storing this oil, the assessee has hired certain tanks under contracts with the abovementioned eight parties and paid them hire charges. The question raised in these appeals is whether tax is to be deducted at source at 20% on the said hire charges under the provisions of section 194-I of the Income-tax Act. For the sake of convenience, we reproduce below this section, to the extent relevant for our purposes :—

"194-I. Any person, not being an individual or a Hindu undivided family, who is responsible for paying to any person any income by way of rent, shall, at the time of credit of such income to the account of the payee or at the time of payment there of in cash or by the issue of a cheque or draft or by any other mode, whichever is earlier, deduct income-tax thereon at the rate of—

(a)fifteen per cent if the payee is an individual or a Hindu undivided family; and

(b)twenty per cent in other cases:

Provided. . .

Explanation.—For the purposes of this section,—

(i)‘rent’ means any payment, by whatever name called, under any lease, sub-lease, tenancy or any other agreement or arrangement for the use of any land or any building (including factory building), together with furniture, fittings and the land appurtenant thereto, whether or not such building is owned by the payee;

(ii)where any income is credited to any account, whether called ‘Suspense account’ or by any other name, in the books of account of the person liable to pay such income, such crediting shall be deemed to be credit of such income to the account of the payee and provisions of this section shall apply accordingly."

The assessee was of the view that the hire or storage charges paid by it to the abovementioned eight parties are subject to deduction of tax at source under the provisions of section 194C of the Income-tax Act and so tax was to be deducted only at 2%, which it did. The contention of the Assessing Officer is that the said charges are covered by the abovesaid provisions of section 194-I and so tax should have been deducted at source at 20% and as this was not done, she levied interest under the provisions of section 201(1A) and also held the assessee as an assessee in default under the provisions of section 201(1) of the Income-tax Act. The orders of the Assessing Officer have been upheld by the CIT(A). The CIT(A) observed at page 12 of his order that the issue raised in this appeal is rather razor thin and it poses a question as subtle as whether tomato is a fruit or a vegetable and, further, the relied upon the decision of the Apex Court in the case of Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay v. Indian Oil Corpn. Ltd. 91 CTR (SC) 135 and decided the issue as follows :

"Almost an identical issue has come up for the kind consideration of the Apex Court in the case of Municipal Corporation of Greater Bombay and others v. Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. 91 CTR 135. The issue to be decided was whether petroleum storage tanks (same as that of appellant) are ‘structures’ or ‘things attached to land’, within the inclusive definition under sections 3(s) and 3(r) respectively of the Bombay