Payment of Service

CESTAT, CHENNAI BENCH

Arun Textiles (P) Ltd.

v.

Commissioner of Central Excise, Salem

P.G.CHACKO, JUDICIAL MEMBER

FINAL ORDER NO. 908 OF 2007

STAY ORDER NO. 751 OF 2007

S/PD APPLICATION NO. 73 OF 2007

AND S/APPEAL NO. 109 OF 2007

JULY 25, 2007

 

 

Section 68 of the Finance Act, 1994 - Payment of service tax - Period, January, 2005 to April, 2005 - Assessee had received goods transport agency’s service - It paid service tax thereon after availing benefit of abatement of duty under Notification No. 32 of 2004-ST - However, requisite service provider’s declaration submitted by assessee to avail said benefit of abatement was found defective by adjudicating authority - Assessee did not made any attempt before him to cure said defected which resulted in confirmation of differential amount of service tax - Assessee’s attempt to cure those defects before appellate authority was alsoHeld, H remained unsuccessful - However, before  instant Tribunal, assessee have sought to establish by producing additional documents, that conditions for availing benefit of Notification No.32 of 2004-ST had been fully satisfied - Whether in such circumstances instant case was to be remanded to original authority for fresh decision - Held, yes [Para 3]

FACTS

The assessee had received services of goods transport agency during period January April, 2005 - It paid service tax on freight incurred by it after availing benefit of abatement of duty under notification No.32 of 2004-ST.  The assessee was required under said Notification to produce the service provider’s declaration to satisfy the specified conditions thereon.  Though said declaration was produced by the assessee, the same was not accepted by the original authority and, consequently, the above abatement was denied to the assessee resulting in demand of differential amount of service tax.  Before the first appellate authority, the assessee filed revised declarations of the service provider but the same were also rejected.

On appeal :

 

HELD

The additional documents had been filed by the assessee in their endeavour to establish that the conditions of Notification No.32 of 2004-ST have been duly complied with and that it was entitled to the benefit of abatement.  It appeared from the records that the defects in the service provider’s declarations, pointed out by the lower authorities, were not serious.  Before the original authority, there was no attempt by the assessee to cure these defects.  Their attempt to cure the defects before the appellate authority was not successful.  That attempt was not complete either.  Before the instant Tribunal, the assessee have sought to establish, by producing additional documents, that conditions of notification No.32 of 2004-ST had been fully satisfied.  However, it was viewed that the assessee should do this appropriately before the original authority.  Accordingly, the orders of both the authorities were to be set aside and the instant case was to be remanded to the original authority for fresh decision.  [Para 3]