Case: M/S Craft Interiors Pvt. Ltd Vs. Commr.Ofcentral Excise,Bangalore

3. The appellant is a private limited company which undertakes various activities, which includes civil works, painting, ceiling work, electrical work, laying of vinyl flooring, tables, chairs, sofa sets, erection of immovable items viz., partitions (wooden/glass/aluminium/gypsum board), storages, workstations, laying of wooden flooring, column cladding, skirting, mirror paneling, window sill, wooden steps, doors, huge conference tables and huge reception tables depending on the customers requirements. The customer places a purchase order to the appellants on a turn-key basis for the entire activity. The customer usually gives a bare open floor which has an exterior wall and internal columns to the appellants for undertaking the work.4. In pursuance of the above said activities, the appellant also manufactures furniture as part of the above mentioned activities.5. The markings based on the drawings approved by the architect are first made on the floor or the wall, as the case may be, depending on whether the item to be erected is a storage unit, large conference table/reception table, running counter etc. Various materials such as wood and plywood are procured from the open market. Frames of the wood are cut to size and fixed to the wall or floor. The plywood required is cut to size and fixed to the wall using screws and nails. Skeletal boxes are then made and fixed on the wall on marked position. Interior partitions and shelves are then made in the case of storage units, running counters, rear unit etc. Once these activities are completed the whole unit is laminated or veneered which would cover the screws and nails. In other words, after these storage units, kitchen counters or conference tables/reception tables are erected they cannot be removed as such and cannot be moved from one place to another. It cannot be dismantled and removed in complete or semi knocked condition from one place to another. It can only be cannibalized as a result of which it gets reduced to broken pieces of wood, laminates etc.6. The Central Excise authorities issued various show cause notices to the appellants alleging that the appellants had manufactured and assembled excisable goods i.e. furniture and furniture parts falling under Chapter 9404 in the premises of various customers. In response it was contended by the appellants that activities undertaken by them i.e. erection of storage units, kitchen counters, reception tables/conference tables etc. results in emergence of immovable property and could not be considered as excisable goods.7. The Commissioner vide his order dated 24.9.2003 held that items like storage units, running counters, large reception tables etc. are classifiable under Chapter 9403 as furniture and liable to excise duty. Aggrieved by the said order the appellants filed an appeal to the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal, Bangalore which agreed with the findings of the Commissioner that although these items emerge on a piece by piece fabrication, the commodity is known in the market by name of table, storage counters etc. and as such are classifiable as furniture under Sub- heading 9403 of the Central Excise Tariff as furniture. Aggrieved, the appellants have filed the present appeal.

Court's reasoning:
15. Thus, a perusal of the definitions given in various dictionaries shows that ordinarily furniture refers to movable items such as desks, tables, chairs, required for use or ornamentation in a house or office. Thus, ordinarily furniture is not something immovable or something which is fixed in a position which can be removed only by cannibalizing. We agree with learned counsel for the appellants that the latter are fixtures and not furniture.16. Several of the items in question in the present case e.g. kitchen overhead and below counters, storage units are, in our opinion, clearly not furniture and hence not excisable under Sub- heading 9403 as furniture.17. In view of the above discussion, we are of the opinion that these appeals have to be allowed. We hold that items which are ordinarily immovable or which ordinarily cannot be removed without cannibalizing e.g. storage units, running counters, over- head unit, rear and side unit, wall unit, pantry unit, kitchen unit and other items which are ordinarily immovable or cannot be removed without cannibalizing are not furniture. However, items like tables, desks, chairs etc. are furniture and hence excisable.We may add that sometimes chairs, beds, tables, desks, etc. are affixed to the ground, but nevertheless they will still be called as furniture (one may recall the fixed bed in Sherlock Holmes story `The Speckled Band). This is because when we interpret a word we should not only see the dictionary meaning but even more the popular meaning which the word has acquired in common parlance. As stated by K.L. Sarkar in his book(see second edition published by Modern Law Publication, Allahabad),popular meaning overpowers the etymological meaning.To give an example, the word `pankaja literally means born in mud. The word `panka means `mud, and the word `ja means `which is born in. Hence the etymological meaning of the word `pankaja is that `which is born in mud. Many things can be born in mud e.g. insects, vegetation, water flowers, etc. However, by popular usage the word `pankaja has acquired a particular meaning in common parlance i.e. lotus. This meaning will, therefore, prevail over the etymological meanings.20. Similarly, the word `furniture has a meaning in common parlance which every layman understands. It commonly refers to chairs, desks, tables, beds, etc. Hence we should give it this popular meaning.