Tax Tribunal Upholds Depreciation Method Decision for 2005-06

The Tribunal upheld the Commissioner's decision to allow depreciation on the WDV method for the assessment year 2005-06, dismissing the Revenue's appeal. The Tribunal found the issue was settled by a previous decision and the Revenue failed to provide material to challenge it. The decision was pronounced in Chennai on May 23, 2014.

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Issues:
1. Appeal against order restricting depreciation claim on windmills.
2. Correct method of depreciation calculation for assessment year 2005-06.

Analysis:
1. The appeal was filed by the Revenue against the order of the Commissioner of Income Tax (Appeals) regarding the depreciation claim on windmills for the assessment year 2005-06. The initial assessment for the preceding year had restricted the depreciation claim to 7.69% on a straight-line method, whereas the assessee had claimed 80% on the WDV method. Subsequently, the assessment for the relevant year was rectified to allow depreciation at 7.69% on the straight-line method, resulting in excess depreciation being added to the assessee's income.

2. The Commissioner (Appeals) directed the Assessing Officer to allow the depreciation claim on the WDV method based on a previous decision of the Tribunal in a similar case. The Revenue, aggrieved by this decision, appealed before the Tribunal. During the proceedings, the Revenue supported the Assessing Officer's order, while the assessee's counsel relied on the previous Tribunal decision, urging the Tribunal to uphold the Commissioner's order.

3. After considering the arguments from both sides and reviewing the relevant documents, the Tribunal found that the issue at hand was already settled by a previous decision of the Chennai Bench of ITAT in a similar case. The Tribunal noted that the Revenue failed to provide any material to challenge the findings of the previous case. Consequently, the Tribunal upheld the Commissioner's decision to allow depreciation on the WDV method for the assessment year 2005-06. As a result, the appeal filed by the Revenue was dismissed, and the decision was pronounced in Chennai on May 23, 2014.

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