Dulichand Lakshminarayan vs The Commissioner Of Income-Tax,Nagpur on 17 February, 1956
8. The fact that the business is taken over by a private limited company does not exclude the operation of Rule 5(8)(d). "Individual" in the context of Sub-clause (d) refers generally to the person taking over the business rather than to the characteristic of the said person. A partner need not necessarily be a natural human being. The word "person" in Section 4 of the Indian Partnership Act contemplates both natural and artificial (i.e., legal) persons [vide Dulichand Laxminarayan v. Commissioner of Income-tax [1956] 29 ITR 635 (SC)]. Further, under Section 12(2) of the Interpretation and General Clauses Act, 1125, the term "individual" can be read in the plural and as such would include a group of individuals also. It need not therefore be limited to a natural human being in its application to Rule 5(8)(d). Moreover, the term "individual" has not been defined in the Act.