Service tax notices for goods transport operator services were invalid where issued before the Section 73 substitution took effect.

Show-cause notices and corrigenda issued before 10.09.2004 for service tax on goods transport operator services were not sustainable because, before the substitution of Section 73 of the Finance Act, 1994, that provision did not cover cases governed by Section 71A read with Rule 7A of the Service Tax Rules, 1994. The notices in question were therefore not in accordance with law, and the resulting demands could not be enforced. By applying the coordinate bench view and judicial discipline, the Revenue's challenges failed.

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Issues: Whether show-cause notices and corrigenda issued before 10.09.2004 for recovery of service tax on goods transport operator services for the period 16.11.1997 to 01.06.1998 were valid and sustainable in law.

Analysis: The liability to file returns in such cases arose under Section 71A of the Finance Act, 1994 read with Rule 7A of the Service Tax Rules, 1994, but Section 73 of the Finance Act, 1994 was substituted with effect from 10.09.2004. Prior to that substitution, Section 73 did not cover cases governed by Section 71A. The show-cause notices and corrigenda in the present matters were issued before 10.09.2004, and the earlier decisions relied on by the Revenue did not consider the substituted provision in the relevant manner. Following the coordinate bench decision and the principle of judicial discipline, notices issued before the amendment were held to be not in accordance with law.

Conclusion: The show-cause notices and corrigenda were invalid, the demands were unsustainable, and the Revenue's appeals were dismissed.

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