Input service credit for statutory canteen services allowed where tax paid on canteen bills was held eligible.

Service tax paid on canteen bills was treated as admissible input service credit because providing canteen facilities was a statutory requirement and a coordinate bench had already approved credit on the same issue. Applying that prior view, the Tribunal held that the tax paid on canteen services formed part of eligible input service credit and could not be denied.

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Issues: Whether service tax paid on canteen bills is admissible as input service credit.

Analysis: The Tribunal noted that making provision for canteen services was a statutory requirement and that a coordinate bench had already held such credit to be admissible on the same issue. Following that decision, the Tribunal accepted that the service tax paid on canteen bills formed part of input service credit.

Conclusion: The credit could not be denied and the assessee was entitled to succeed.

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