TMI Blog1985 (3) TMI 22X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... in their interpretative jurisdiction, they take note of the intendment of the legislature and often supply the omissions in the enacted law and sometimes propound even new avenues for the legislature to take note of and regularise them by the enacted law. The legal profession and the litigant public, therefore, look for enlightenment in the law of the country by studying the law reports which contain the decisions of the highest courts of the country. In the federal set up of Bharat, such authoritative decisions emanate only from the Supreme Court at the centre and the High Courts in the States. In T.C. Nos. 133 to 137 of 1977, the applicant is the Commissioner of Income-tax, Tamil Nadu.I, Madras. The respondent is Messrs Vasan Publications Private Limited, Madras. In T. C. No. 343 of 1977, the Commissioner of Income-tax, Tamil Nadu II, Madras, is the applicant and Shri A. Jawahar Palaniappan, Madras, is the respondent. In T.C. Nos. 950 and 951 of 1977, the Commissioner of Income-tax, Tamil Nadu-I, Madras, is the applicant and M/s. Vasan Publications (P.) Limited, Madras, is the respondent. in T.C. No. 755 of 1979, the Commissioner of Income-tax, Tamil Nadu-I, Madras, is t ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and machinery of the assessee-company ? 2. Whether the finding of the Appellate Tribunal that 'Ananda Vikatan' is a 'Newspaper' is based on valid and proper materials and is a reasonable view to take on the facts and in the circumstances of the case ? 3. Whether the interpretation given by the Appellate Tribunal to the word 'Newspaper' used in the depreciation Schedule is proper and justified ?" This is with reference to the assessment made by the Commissioner of Income-tax, Tamil Nadu-II, Madras, and the respondent herein is Shri A. Jawahar Palaniappan, Madras, who is the respondent in T.C. No. 343 of 1977. The questions of law that have been referred in this reference are as follows: " 1. Whether the finding of the Appellate Tribunal that 'Kumudam' and 'Kalkandu' are 'Newspapers' is based on valid and proper materials and is a reasonable view to take on the facts and in the circumstances of the case ? 2. Whether the interpretation given by the Appellate Tribunal to the word 'Newspaper' used in the depreciation Schedule is proper and justified." Let us briefly state the case that is put forward by the applicant in the above T.C. Nos. 133 to 137 of 1977, 343 of 1 ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ther submitted that the Appellate Assistant Commissioner erred in referring to the definition of the word " Newspaper " in other enactments like the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, etc. On the other hand, on behalf of the assessee-respondent, M/s. Vasan Publications Private Limited, reliance was placed on the orders of the Appellate Assistant Commissioner. It was further pointed out that "Ananda Vikatan " satisfied the definition of newspaper by all standards and it contained news items. It was also pointed out that the printing work relating to the assessee's publication was done in the same manner as in the case of any other newspaper and the assessee's machine was engaged continuously for the production of the newspaper. It was further submitted that in the original assessments made for the first four years, the Income-tax Officer had considered the issue and had correctly granted depreciation at the rate of 10% and since all the facts were available to the Income-tax Officer while making the original assessments, there was no jurisdiction to revise the said assessments. Attention was invited to the term " Newspaper " under various other enactments such as the Pres ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ions of current news, comments on news, cinema news, sports news, advertisements, literary matters and many other items of public interest. The Tribunal has also observed that matters having a permanent interest for the purpose of reference in future were not so much available in the publication " Ananda Vikatan " as matters relating to news value. The Tribunal was of the view that in judging whether a journal or a magazine was a newspaper or not, due regard had to be given not only to the contents of the magazine but also to the strata of the reading public to which it catered. The Tribunal noticed that it catered to a category of persons, ladies, etc., enjoying leisure, who do not feel the urgency to have knowledge of the news instantly and to them " Ananda Vikatan " had news value. The Tribunal, therefore, was satisfied on facts that " Ananda Vikatan " not only satisfied the requirements of a newspaper by publishing items of current events and political news but also satisfied the customers who habitually bought this journal by giving the comments about the news and the current events every week. The Tribunal further noticed that the Tamil Nadu Government had exempted newspapers ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ppeal, the Tribunal perused some (sample) copies of " Kumudam and " Kalkandu " printed by the assessee during the relevant accounting year and took the view that the above journals fall under the category of newspapers. The Tribunal also referred to the notification issued by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue), Central Excise, New Delhi, and the treatment of the Government of Tamil Nadu of the said journals as newspapers. The Tribunal, therefore, directed that depreciation at the rate of 10% on the plant and machinery of the assessee should be allowed. The Tribunal accordingly set aside the order of the Additional Commissioner of Income-tax. On the above facts, the following question of law arises for consideration : " Whether, on the facts and in the circumstances of the case, the assessee is entitled to depreciation at the rate of 10% on the plant and machinery employed by the assessee in his printing press for the assessment year 1969-70 ? " In T.C. Nos. 950 and 951 of 1977, for the assessment years 1965-66 and 1967-68, the Income-tax Officer, who made the original assessments, allowed depreciation on the plant and machinery used by the assessee company at ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... rther pointed out that " Ananda Vikatan " satisfied the definition of newspaper by all standards and it contained news items. It was further pointed out that the painting work relating to the assessee's journal was done in the same manner as in the case of any other newspaper and the assessee's machine was engaged continuously for the production of the newspaper. It was further submitted that in the original assessments made for the first four years, the Income-tax Officer had considered the issue and had correctly granted depreciation at the rate of 10% and since all the facts were available to the Income-tax Officer while making the original assessments, there was no jurisdiction to revise the said assessments. Attention of the Tribunal was also drawn to the definition of the term "newspaper" under various other enactments such as the Press and Registration of Books Act, the Working journalists (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, etc. It was also submitted that even under the Sales Tax Act, newspapers were exempt from taxation. Some issues of the " Ananda Vikatan " were also produced before the Appellate Tribunal in support of the assessee's plea. The Tri ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e end, held that " Ananda Vikatan " is a newspaper and depreciation at the rate of 10% is admissible on the plant and machinery of the assessee company. In view of this finding, the Tribunal did not consider it necessary to consider the contention raised on behalf of the assessees about the validity of the reopening of the assessments for the first four assessment years under section 147(b) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. In T.C. No. 755 of 1979, Shri A. Jawahar Palaniappan is the respondent. This is with respect to the assessment year 1969-70. The statement of the case has already been incorporated in T.C. No. 343 of 1977. These references in T.C. Nos. 133 to 137, 343 of 1977, 950 and 951 of 1977 and 755 of 1979, relate to a common issue involved in them and as such are consolidated and all these references are disposed of by a common order. Mr. J. Jayaraman, the learned counsel for the applicant-Income-tax Department, submits that the weekly magazines " Ananda Vikatan " and " Kumudam " which are published in Tamil are not newspapers and as such depreciation at the rate of 10% is, therefore, not admissible on the plant and machinery of the assessee company concerned as well ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... also published in the form of books. According to Mr. J. Jayaraman, the learned counsel for the Department, considering the high literary and artistic value these journals, " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu " possess, they should not be treated as mere newspapers which are so ephemeral and cease to have any value on the next day of their publication. Mr. J. Jayaraman, therefore, contends that the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Madras, is wrong in holding on the facts and in the circumstances of the case that " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ", the weekly magazines published by the respective assessees, are newspapers and depreciation at the rate of 10% was, therefore, admissible on the plant and machinery of the assessees. Mr. Subramaniam and Shri T. Srinivasamurthi, the learned counsel appearing on behalf of the assessees, who are publishing "Ananda Vikatan" " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ", contend that the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Madras is perfectly correct in holding in all these references that the weekly magazines are newspapers and this finding of the Appellate Tribunal is based on valid and proper materials and is also reasonable view to ta ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... , published by Sri A. Jawahar Palaniappan, can be called as newspapers. If " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu " are newspapers, then the respective assessees in these references are entitled to depreciation on the plant and machinery at the rate of 10% in accordance with rule 5 of the Income-tax Rules read with Appendix I, Part I, item III(iii) N. Clause 2. Even at the outset I may state that the order of the Income-tax Appellate Tribunal, Madras Bench " A ", rendered in I.T.A. No. 1465 of 1971-72 dated April 30, 1973, in M.L.J. Press Private Limited v. ITO Madras, is distinguishable on the facts of that case and the same would not apply to the facts of the instant references before us. The question whether a particular magazine is a newspaper or not can be decided only with reference to the facts of the particular case. In the instant case of " Ananda Vikatan " as well as " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ", it is relevant to note that it is not disputed when it is represented on behalf of the assessees by Mr. Subramaniam that the machineries employed for the the publication of the magazines concerned, viz., " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu the very same mach ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ces, the Orissa High Court observed that the petitioner in that case could not rely on the fact that this monthly was registered as a " newspaper " under the Post Office Act and the Press and Registration of Books Act. They, however, held that " Cuttack Law Times " was not entitled to exemption under the provisions of the Orissa Sales Tax Act. The question whether a publication can be called a newspaper or not depends upon the facts and circumstances of such case. What is more, it is only the legal interpretation of the relevant provision of the several enactments governing the publication that will have to be taken as guidance for coming to the conclusion regarding dispute which may involve the question whether the publication is a newspaper or not and it is not on extraneous matters or on a general approach that a conclusion can be arrived at with respect to this aspect and at the same time finding a point of law that arises for determination by a court of law. Of course, the principles of law have to be applied to the facts that are in existence in a case and it is not as if merely on the basis of arguments without evidence available on record that a conclusion can be arrived at ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... y printed periodical work containing public news or comments on public news, and includes a news agency supplying material for publication in a newspaper. " In section 2(aa) of the Delivery of Books and Newspapers Act, 1954, the expression is defined as follows : "'newspaper' means any printed periodical work containing public news or comments on public news published in conformity with the provisions of section 5 of the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867. " Section 2(b) of the Newspaper (Price and Page) Act, 1956, reads as under : "`newspaper' means any printed periodical work containing public news or comments on public news appearing at intervals of not more than a week. " The power of the Legislature of Tamil Nadu to levy a sales tax is derived from entry No. 54 of List If of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution of India which reads as under: " Taxes on the sale or purchase of goods other than newspapers, subject to the provisions of entry 92-A of List I. " The term " newspaper " is also defined in dictionaries as under: In the Law Lexicon of British India by Shri P. Ramanatha Iyer, 1940 edition, at page 871, the following passage appears " A ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d not be defined as 'books' or 'newspapers' but which had historical, cultural or literary value. " (State v. Udit, AIR 1955 All 524 (cases discussed). In another case, it was held : " The expression 'paper' 'printed' in section 3 could not be construed in its wider sense as meaning any piece of paper upon which anything is printed, or should it be construed as synonymous with 'newspaper'. The words 'printed paper' must be construed ejusdem generis with 'book'. Any paper with a piece of writing, the composition of which has entailed certain amount of labour and skill and which may be reckoned to be literary, or a dramatic, musical or an artistic work; or a paper read before an academic, or literary or historical or scientific, or research society, or any printed paper having some substance in it, should come within the purview of printed paper. An ordinary piece of advertisement, an invitation card, or any piece of writing without any substance in it or a poster about a meeting or a society, or an election poster will be excluded from the purview of 'printed paper"' (Ramakant A., In re; 1955 NUC 3869). In view of the definition of "paper " inserted in section 1 by Act 55 of 1955, i ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... agazines and even law reports (P.S.V. Iyer v. CST, AIR 1960 Orissa 221, 233; [1960] 11 STC 608 (Orissa)). It must be issued periodically, i.e., at regular intervals. The news must relate to happenings of recent occurrence or new information about past or coming events. It follows that a publication which exclusively publishes legal notes would not be a " newspaper ". Subject to the foregoing conditions, it may relate to any subject for the information of the general reader, such as political, social, moral, religious or other matters of public interest, local or foreign. The news which is reported or commented upon in a newspaper must relate to public affairs or matters of public interest. In order to appreciate fully the definition of a " newspaper ", it is necessary that we must know as to what we mean by a " book ". In its widest connotation, the word " 'book' implies anything from which one may learn ". (vide Concise Oxford Dictionary). The definition of " book " in section 1(1) of the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, is not descriptive but inclusive; it only adds certain items which might not have been comprehended in the word " book " but for th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... hich is printed and published or if it is a weekly newspaper then those news which had been collected and required by an editor of a newspaper as matters which have to be given as important news items for the week or if it is a fortnightly with a similar attitude and approach done by the editor of a newspaper so as to give by way of news, the details relating to the various events that had taken place in the said fortnight, etc. Usually, it is the daily newspapers which are printed and published either in English or in any other language that are recognised by the reading public as newspapers. They are published either in the morning or in the evening printed in a paper of the size two feet in length and 1 1/2 feet in breadth. It is such a printed matter in a paper of that size containing the day to day information about the events which form news published through them news to the members of the public. It is these newspapers that are held in common parlance as newspapers but it is to be well remembered that it is only a conception of the common man. It is relevant to note whether the weekly publications consist of not only such news items relating to the politics as well as other ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... spectable manner and also give out articles and essays on important topics available in literature. It is further relevant in this connection to note that these three publications have got wide circulation throughout the globe wherever there are Tamil-knowing persons living, most of the persons, so living, especially ladies, have got an avidity to read the three publications and the credit of name that they possess in the world of journalism is something unique. People used to purchase these three publications for satisfying their literary taste. Persons who are accustomed to read serial novels (thodarkathai) written by leading novelists and short story writers have got great enthusiasm and aptitude to read these three publications, namely, " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ". These three publications have the good fortune of having great persons among the various fields of knowledge, including judges of High Courts, professors and heads of the department of various branches of study in various universities as well as persons who have prominent positions in the literary world as contributors of articles, short stories, etc., for being published in them. From the pen of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... trolling ballad singers, word of mouth, the trumpeted proclamation, posted notices, private letters-many have been the devices by which society has informed itself of the news of its extraordinary events, its wars, its commerce. (vide Encyclopaedia Americana, 1971 edition, page 286). A late 16th century ballad singer, hawking his tales in the streets or coffee houses of England, telling in full detail of a strangling in Lancashire, or of the movement and cargo of Spanish ships from Cadiz, or of the death of a Henry, was not far off the formula which has served the purveyors of news up to the present time. The most up-to-date front page of the 20th century newspaper still carries the news of crime, fires, disasters, the news from along the traffic lanes of commerce, the news of the acts of Government, as the main burden of its content. This threefold function of the newspaper is rooted deep in history. When the modern newspaper prints a column on parliamentary debate or the details of a pending tax law, it is following a path pioneered by the Acta Diurna of the Roman empire, or by the metropolitan gazettes of China which date to the first centuries of the Christian era, or by ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... and the arts. To the newspaper's news core is added opinion, criticism, comment, interpretation. And a third ingredient of the newspaper's formula is the entertaining feature. Serving such an insistent human demand and upon the basis of this history and this formula, the newspaper has today become a major social institution. It is influential and powerful, although not unlimitedly so. It can destroy and build. It can motivate society or restrain it. So powerful has the newspaper become, that concern is growing over the discharge of its public responsibility. Questions are being raised : should this critical instrument of power be left to the caprices of private ownership, or should the public assert some measure of control over it ? Differing answers to these questions formed the basis of one of the, problems of the press in the 1950's and 1960's. The issue has been debated internationally in the United Nations (Sub-commission on Freedom of Information and the Press) as it touches upon the worldwide flow of news and the relations among the press of various nations with differing philosophies of press freedom and control. It has also been debated strenuously within nations, as, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... political party, or is it an objective (and what is objectivity ?) chronicler of the facts? Whatever the answers to these questions are, and they vary from place to place and from time to time, it is true that strong forces are at work today toward the professionalisation of the newspaper calling and toward the improvement of its standards. In the early 1950's, an International Press Institute was organised, with headquarters in Switzerland, for research and action on behalf of the press of the world. Publishers have their national and international associations, as do editors. The trade union movement has long contributed to the improvement of the mechanical arts of newspaper production, and has more recently begun organisation of editorial workers journalism schools, particularly in the United States, but increasingly in other lands, have been established to enrich the training of newspapermen. We, in India, have diploma courses in journalism conducted in universities. (vide Encylopaedia Americana, 1971 edn., pages 288 and 289). Broadly speaking, regarding its organisation, the newspaper operates with two arms-business and editorial. The business arm controls plant and pur ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... produces newsprint. One will guide the mechanics of the manufacturing process with the aid of foreman and shop superintendents. One will head a corps of salesmen which keep the advertising rolling in and sees that it is readied for publication. One will be an executive for promotion who keeps his newspaper in the public eye both as a bid to new subscribers and new advertisers, and one an executive, who sells and distributes the finished product. In and around these functionaries are the bookkeepers and accountants who keep the records straight, the newspaper's legal counsel who advise on contracts, guards against libel, and defend the paper when necessary, and various others depending upon the individual newspaper. " The Editorial Process " is an important function. To follow a newspaper account from the event to finished product will give a picture of the editorial process in operation. A fire breaks out in a warehouse in the city. The city desk is " tipped off " when the fire is started. This tip may have been received through one or more of many channels, perhaps it is accidental and anonymous; a lively newspaper has a way of attracting information. Perhaps the newspaper kee ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ader and the account of a warehouse fire is part of the public intelligence. This is the course of a news story, whether from a beat reporter in a police station or a foreign correspondent who transmits his text by cable. Much matter in modern newspapers is received from press associations, such as the Associated Press, United Press International, Reuters (of Britain) and others which maintain reporters in all quarters and sell their accounts to many newspapers at one time. Thus, the cost of such reporting to anyone newspaper is shared and minimised (vide Encyclopaedia Americana, 1971 edition, pages 289 and 290). Merely on the ground that important news items received from such news-collecting organisations are epitomised and given in the weeklies which also contain short stories and other items, they cannot be excluded from themselves being considered as newspapers. In the instant case, the weeklies, viz., " Ananda Vikatan ", " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ", contain such news received from the well-known news agencies and short stories. They contain advertisements also which give them very appreciable source of income to run them profitably. The " printing processes " of newspaper ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... Roman Senate. The Acta Publica was of wider interest, gave imperial financial reports and considerable attention to public affairs generally. Creative both mechanically and artistically, the Germans were early pioneers in the production of newspapers. In the half century, following the introduction of printing from movable type in Mainz, a few irregular news sheets appeared in Nurnberg, Augsburg, Cologne, probably the earliest of a type of news record that endured and developed through the next three centuries throughout Europe. There is extant a Newezeytung dated 1502. In 1588, the Cologne Gallo Belgicus appeared, and in 1597 Historische Relatio was printed in Rorschah am Bodensee for an Augsburg editor. With the arrival of the 17th century, more regular newspaper appeared in Germany as in other countries, the Aviso Relation oder Zeitung (variously attributed to Nurnberg, Augsburg or Brundswick) in 1609. Egenolf Emmell's Die Frankfurter Oberpostmtzszeitung in 1615, a first German daily in Leipzig in 1660 and the Jenaische Zeitung in 1674, which remained in the same family ownership until modern times. By the end of the 17th century, Germany boasted 30 daily newspapers, and trad ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... earliest French journal was the Gazette de France, published in Paris in 1631. French journalism has been marked by strong political opinions of high literary merit. Many Frenchmen of letters had their start on the newspapers and continued to write journalistically throughout their careers. It was France which first developed newspapers for the masses. A few years after it was founded in 1836, Le Siecle had raced to a world record circulation of 38,000 copies per day. France was the first country to have newspaper circulations above a million. In 1903, more than 60 dailies were being published in Paris, a figure which declined to 14 by, the late 1960's. Circulations also shrank after the war, and Francesoir became the only newspaper having a circulation of more than a million (vide Encyclopaedia Americana, 1971 edition, vol. 20, page 291). Ballad singers, paid writers of news-letters and occasional printed records of single events satisfied the hunger for news in England for over century after the introduction of printing in 1476. Political and religious unrest kept the art of printing under close governmental scrutiny and licensing did not permit the appearance of news sheets. ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d parliamentarians, each with journalistic spokesmen. Mercurius Aulicus was a leading royalist mouthpiece. Mercurius Politicus was the voice of Cromwell. With the Restoration, strict licensing reappeared, and the newspapers waned. Henry Muddiman and Roger L'Estrange were officially named to issue the only news in the realm. It was Muddiman who published the first issue of the Oxford Gazette, the official organ of the Government. The date was November 16, 1665, and the place was temporarily Oxford as the court had moved there to escape the plague in London. After its 24th issue, it was moved to London and became the London Gazette which continued as a twice weekly official bulletin to this day. Towards the end of the century, newspapers appeared in increasing numbers. The first English daily, the Daily Courant, appeared on March 11, 1702. The first half of the 18th century was a brilliant era in British journalism. Defoe, Swift, Fielding, Samuel Johnson, and the incomparable Addison and Steele left permanent marks upon English journalism and letters. The first Tatler appeared in 1709, and the Spectator in 1711. The last half of the century saw the appearance of some of England's ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... 2, the Diario de Pernambuco (Brazil) from 1825, the Jornal de commercio, Rio de Janeiro, from 1827. Newspapers of Argentina date from 1861. La capital of Rosario was founded in 1867, La Prensa of Buenos Aires (confiscated by the Peron Government in 1951), in 1869 and La Nacion also Buenos Aires, in 1870. Maria moors cabot prizes, administered by Columbia University in New York, have recognised distinguished Latin American newspapers and journalists since 1939. In the Orient, newspapers came to India in the 18th century. The Bombay Samachar, first printed in English and now in Gujarati, dates from 1819. The Calcutta Amrita Bazar Patrika was established in 1869. Today over 500 dailies are published in India. The modern press in Japan is almost a phenomenon. Its newspapers are influential and, following Britain and the United States, boast the largest circulations in the world. The three largest papers-Mainichi, Asahi and Yomiuri-have a combined circulation of over 12 million. In the Soviet Union, the two most important papers, both reflecting official party policy, are Pravda, with a circulation of over 6 million, and Izvestia, with more than 4 million (vide Encyclopaedia American ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tisements, short stories, etc. To take another example, in the issue dated February 1, 1970, the editor has written on the then current political event under the caption of "Jananayagam Kavizhnduvidum ". There are also articles about cinema news. There are other items of topical news like " Chandranukku Pogakkoodatha ", i.e., an interview with Dr. Gopalan by the correspondent of " Ananda Vikatan ". In this issue, there is also an essay about Mathrubutheswaran temple written by " Bharanidharan " which speaks of the greatness of Ramana Maharishi and his life and teachings. On a perusal of some of these issues, we find that " Ananda Vikatan " contains publications of current events, comments on news, cinema news, sports news, advertisements, literary matters and many other items of public interest. In the said publication, there are matters relating to news value. Of course, there are also certain short stories. " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu " have been registered as newspapers in Ceylon and they were further considered as " newspapers " by the Registrar of Newspapers, Government of India, New Delhi. We have also perused some of the copies of " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu " printed by th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... fication issued by the Ministry of Finance (Department of Revenue), Central Excise, New Delhi, also supports the assessee's contention that these publications, viz., " Kumudam " and " Kalkandu ", are newspapers. The Government of Tamil Nadu had treated the assessee's journal " Kumudam " as a newspaper for the purpose of imposing power cut in Tamilnadu during the relevant time. In Madhusudan Mahanti v. Emperor (42 Crl LJ 78 ; AIR 1940 Pat 613) it was held that the Press and Registration of Books Act (XXV of 1867) does not contemplate that a single sheet of paper in which a writer publishes an article relating to some current topic should be regarded as a book of which a copy is required to be delivered to the officer concerned under the Act. The definition of " book " as given in section I of the Act of XXV of 1867 is exhaustive. It is wrong to say that the " book " may include documents other than those specifically mentioned in the definition. In P.S.V. Iyer v. Commissioner of Sales Tax [1960] 11 STC 608 AIR 1960 Orissa 221, it was held that the main object of a newspaper is to give information about recent events and which is not a record, but is in its nature ephemeral, ev ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... publications containing film news and publications containing reports of the judgments of the courts as well as comments on such judgments. Ismail J., as he then was, has observed in the above said decision at page 491 as follows ; " I am unable to accept this argument. 'Public news' must ordinarily mean news concerning or of interest to the public generally or any sections of the public. In this particular case, as far as the petitioner in the former writ petition is concerned, all the three publications admittedly contain film news. Film news can certainly be said to be 'public news' inasmuch as, though not the entire public, a considerable section of the public, is interested in the same. Similarly, the publications of the petitioner in the second writ petition can be said to contain 'public news' or 'comments on public news' since it contains reports of the judgments of the courts as well as comments on such judgments. Even though the same may be primarily intended for that section of the public which is concerned with law and the administration of law, in the present days, nothing prevents any educated individual taking interest in such publications and the news themselv ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... looking into this larger aspect. Hence, I shall first have my say on the claim of Kumudam and Ananda Vikatan to newspaper status, before proceeding to examine what I regard as the only pertinent issue in these cases, namely, the issue as to depreciation allowance. The Tribunal and my learned colleague have gone into the wide world to find out what a newspaper is, obviously because we are not favoured with a definition by the income-tax statute. They have consulted dictionaries. They have looked into the definitions of newspapers, wherever they could discover a definition in special interpretation clauses. With respect, I think, this quest for an outside definition for an inside expression in the Income-tax Rules is not called for; dictionaries are notoriously diffuse, some of them only handmaids for crossword puzzles setters. Lexicographers are merely collectors of meanings. Even so, within the limitations of space, they cannot exhaust all the shades of meaning a word might carry. Much less can they truly bring out what is more precious than definition, usage. Ever since the fateful days of Macaulay and the Elbert Bill in 1835, English has become the ruling tongue in this countr ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ome effort, they were able to find some articles which they could interpret as having a news value. On this basis, they said that these two weeklies are newspapers. They also punctuated their conclusion with the poser, whether anyone has said anywhere that a newspaper should be daily publication, and not a weekly or a fortnightly or other periodical. More or less a similar approach is to be found in the judgment of my learned colleague. With respect, the approach is misconceived. You do not have to put to a rigorous analysis any reading matter in printed literature to know whether what you read is a newspaper. What with headlines, sub-headings and " boxes ", the news must fairly stare you in the face, if it is newspaper. Sometimes, the headlines even scream at you. So if you have to delve into the pages of the periodicals, as the Tribunal did with Kumudam and Ananda Vikatan, to discover if they are newspapers, the need for that very exercise puts them out of the category of the newspaper. Besides, with a weekly or a fortnightly, a week or a fortnight inevitably passes between one issue and the next. The week's news or the fortnight's news, if it can be so called, have no news va ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... tly can be a newspaper, why not a monthly or a quarterly or annual? You only have to see that they do not discuss " dead " questions, that they carry an article or two dealing with subjects on which public interest has not waned or completely worn off. All this discussion is only to show that it would be quite a reasonable construction not to stretch the meaning of " newspapers" beyond its ordinary acceptation of a daily newspaper.. There are many ways in which a daily newspaper is distinguishable from other publications in circulation periodically but its chief distinction lies in its daily appearance carrying the day's news. I should also dismiss, as purposeless, the collection of special definitions from such enactments as the Working journalists (Conditions of Service) and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1955, the Press Council Act, 1965, the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867, the Newspaper (Price and Page) Act, 1956, and similar enactments all of which are special legislative measures intended to meet special situations or confer special rights or impose special obligations. We cannot, therefore, draw from any of these special definitions and stuff their special meani ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the phrase will not be yielded by surrendering its components and by looking up for a dictionary meaning for each and everyone of the constituent words. Even on the best of occasions, as we earlier indicated, giving to a statutory expression the dictionary meaning would not always be a safe interpretation, The caution against the use of the dictionary must be all the greater where what the legislature employ is not a single word, but a composite phrase. In such cases, we must attribute to the draftsman an intention to pack the phrase with a meaning all its own. That meaning cannot be derived by taking the phrase into bits and parts and seeking to apply the dictionary meaning to each and everyone of the word so dissected. In Lee v. Showmen's Guild of Great Britain (1952] 2 QB 392; (1952] 1 All ER II 75 (CA), a question arose about a proper meaning to be assigned to the phrase " unfair competition " which was used in the rules of the tribunal. The argument before the Court of Appeal in that case concentrated on the one or the other of the two words " unfair " and " competition ". Somervell L.J., however, condemned this method of construction, observing as follows (at p. 1178 of I ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he class of assets, the second with the depreciation as percentage allowance, either on the actual cost or on the written down value and the third column is devoted to remarks. . In the column " class of assets" are to be found, one below the other, several classes of depreciable assets. There are three broad classifications: (1) Buildings, (11) Furniture and fittings, and (III) Machinery and plant. In class III, under the heading " machinery and plant ", a general rate is applied under sub-classification (i). The general rate is applicable to machinery or plant for which no special rates are prescribed under sub-classification (ii). Under item (ii), which carries the heading " Special rates ", there are several subdivisions or categories of machinery and plant distinguished one from the other by letters of the alphabet in block capitals, such as A, B, C and so on. Under each alphabetical category, there are sub-categories of machinery and plant. An analysis of these " special rates " under clause (ii) of item III of Appendix shows that in some cases, the rates are made applicable to itemised classes of machinery, such, for instance, as " accounting machines ". In certain other ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... sessees that these two weeklies bring out their printed matter by a rotary press on a mass scale, in the same way as the daily press bring out their morning or evening editions. This, in my view, is to mistake the nature of a production unit by the character of its mechanical equipment. What the depreciation schedule asks us to do is to apply a special rate for the entire unit. It does not take the several items in the productive, unit as each constituting a depreciable asset in itself for applying the rate of 10%. Ordinarily, a daily newspaper would be printed in a rotary press, especially a newspaper with a large circulation, but it would still be a daily newspaper if it were printed in a treadle or in a flat bed machine. It is not the type of printing machinery which is indicated by the phrase "newspaper production plant and machinery " nor its productive capacity. What is indicated is the whole productive unit. The idea conveyed by this phrase refers to a publication complex concerned with a newspaper productions a daily affair. I do not think this phrase is appropriate to convey a printing press engaged in turning out weeklies or other periodicals. There is a vast difference b ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e finding of the Appellate Tribunal that 'Ananda Vikatan', 'Kumudam' and 'Kalkandu' are newspapers is based on valid and proper materials and is a reasonable view to take on the facts and in the circumstances of the case ? 3. Whether the interpretation given by the Appellate Tribunal to the word 'newspaper' used in the depreciation Schedule is proper and justified ? " The papers will now be placed before the learned Chief justice for appropriate further action in terms of Section 259(2) of the Income-tax Act, 1961. RAMANUJAM J. (19-10-1984).-These matters have been posted before me on a difference of opinion between Balasubrahmanyan J. and Swamikkannu J., on the question as to whether the printing presses of Tamil weeklies, " Kumudam Kalkandu " and " Ananda Vikatan " are " newspaper production plant and machinery " entitled to a special higher depreciation allowance, namely, 10% as against the general rate of depreciation of 7%. Balasubrahmanyan J. has taken the view that the plant and machinery which are used for printing the weeklies in question cannot come within the expression " newspaper, production plant and machinery " and, therefore, they are not entitled to hav ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... pers, still as they use substantially the same plant and machinery as have been used for the production of newspapers, they are also entitled to the special higher depreciation allowance provided for under the statute. It is further contended for the assessees that even otherwise, in so far as the contents of the weeklies are of considerable news value, they should be taken to come within the term " newspaper The question is how far the above submissions are tenable. it is significant to note that neither the Income-tax Act nor the Rules framed thereunder contain a definition of " newspaper. " In the absence of any definition, the court has to construe the expression " newspaper " in its popular sense and not in any special and technical sense. As has been pointed out by Lord Denning M. R. in Dyson Holdings Ltd. v. Fox [1975] 3 All ER 1030; 3 WLR 744 (CA), while interpreting the expression "family " occurring in a statute (at p. 747 of 3 WLR) : " The word 'family' in the 1968 Act is not used in any technical sense: but in a popular sense. It is not used in the sense in which it would be used by a studious and unworldly lawyer, but in the sense in which it would be used by a m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... untarily by the assessee, is not material and that the assessee cannot convert the publication which is not otherwise a newspaper into a newspaper by his conduct. In P. S. V. Iyer v. Commissioner of Saks Tax [1960] 11 STC 608 (Orissa), the " Cuttack Law Times " a non-official monthly law journal containing, inter alia, reports of important decisions of the Orissa High Court, the Orissa Board of Revenue and the Supreme Court has been held to be not a newspaper as it is primarily meant to be a book of reference to be cited in the law courts and cannot, in any sense, be called a " newspaper " in the popular sense. In that case, the journal has been registered as a " newspaper under the Post Offices Act, 1898, and the Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867. When such registration was relied on for the purpose of claiming exemption for the journal as a newspaper, the court held that such registration will not be of any avail to the assessee and the interpretation put on the expression " newspaper " by the authorities under those Acts would not bind either the High Court or the Sales Tax Department. In that case, the dictionary meaning of " newspaper was relied on. The court, however, ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... subrahmanyan J., newspaper production plant and machinery has got to be construed as referring to a unit engaged in the production of newspaper and a unit or plant producing a weekly or other periodicals is not the same thing as a plant producing newspaper. The expression " newspaper production plant and machinery " must be taken to refer to a plant as such engaged in newspaper production, in all its aspects and in all its comprehensive whole. What that expression does is to bring under one rate all the component items of machinery in the entire plant of a newspaper production unit, which would include not only the printing press, but a host of other machines and mechanical appliances. Thus, the whole productive apparatus of a newspaper production plant is taken as a unit for the purpose of grant of higher depreciation. The fact that more or less similar plant and machinery is used for the, manufacture of weeklies or other periodicals will not bring them under the definition of " newspaper production plant and machinery ". Further, the fact that the weeklies have been registered as newspapers under other statutes like the Post Offices Act and the Press and Registration of Books Act ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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