Tribunal confirms service tax demand with interest & penalties, appeal rejected. No infirmity found.

The tribunal upheld the adjudicating authority's order, confirming the service tax demand along with interest and penalties. The appeal was rejected, and the tribunal found no infirmity in the impugned order warranting appellate intervention.

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Issues Involved:
1. Time-barred demand and wilful mis-statement or suppression of facts.
2. Validity of the Show Cause Notice.
3. Classification of the service rendered.
4. Authenticity and receipt of the work order.
5. Suppression of facts and non-reflection in ST-3 returns.
6. Bona fide belief regarding non-taxability.
7. Applicability of exemption under Notification No. 17/2005-ST.
8. Issuance of multiple Show Cause Notices for the same period.

Detailed Analysis:

Issue 1: Time-barred demand and wilful mis-statement or suppression of facts
The appellant contended that the demand was time-barred as there was no wilful mis-statement or suppression of facts. However, the tribunal held that the Show Cause Notice was issued within the extended period of five years, permissible in cases involving wilful mis-statement or suppression of facts with intent to evade service tax. The tribunal emphasized that the date on which the Revenue became aware of the facts was irrelevant and that the extended period was justifiable given the appellant's suppression of facts.

Issue 2: Validity of the Show Cause Notice
The appellant argued that the Show Cause Notice was invalid as it did not specify under which specific clause of Section 65 (97a) the service was covered. The tribunal found this argument inconsequential, noting that the definition of "Site Formation and Clearance, Excavation, and Earthmoving and Demolition" was clear and that the appellant's ability to defend itself was not compromised by the non-mention of a specific clause.

Issue 3: Classification of the service rendered
The appellant claimed that the service rendered was agricultural land levelling, excluded from the purview of Section 65 (105) (zzza) read with Section 65 (97a). The tribunal rejected this claim, stating that the work was related to a housing project and not agriculture. The tribunal clarified that the service did not fall under the exclusions provided in the definition of site formation services.

Issue 4: Authenticity and receipt of the work order
The appellant disputed the authenticity of the work order dated 17.06.2006. The tribunal found that the appellant issued a bill corresponding to the work order and received payments as per the details in the work order, establishing the authenticity and receipt of the work order.

Issue 5: Suppression of facts and non-reflection in ST-3 returns
The tribunal noted that the appellant did not reflect the received amount in its ST-3 returns and failed to provide details during the investigation, which were obtained from the service recipient. This non-disclosure was deemed sufficient to establish suppression of facts with intent to evade service tax.

Issue 6: Bona fide belief regarding non-taxability
The appellant claimed a bona fide belief that the service tax was not leviable. The tribunal dismissed this claim, stating that the definition of the service was clear and that mere utterance of "bona fide belief" without a reasonable basis did not constitute a valid defense.

Issue 7: Applicability of exemption under Notification No. 17/2005-ST
The appellant argued for exemption under Notification No. 17/2005-ST. The tribunal found the exemption inapplicable as the service was not provided in the course of construction of roads, airports, railways, etc., as specified in the notification.

Issue 8: Issuance of multiple Show Cause Notices for the same period
The appellant contended that another Show Cause Notice covering the same period had been issued, making the current notice invalid. The tribunal clarified that the other notice related to different transactions and did not cover the present service, thus the issuance of multiple notices was justified.

Conclusion:
The tribunal upheld the adjudicating authority's order, confirming the service tax demand along with interest and penalties. The appeal was rejected, and the tribunal found no infirmity in the impugned order warranting appellate intervention. The judgment was pronounced in the open court on 30.6.2015.

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