Appeal granted clarifying service tax credit entitlement and liability, emphasizing compliance for transparency and tax standards.

The Tribunal allowed the appeal, granting relief to the appellant, clarifying the entitlement of the recipient to claim service tax credit based on payments made by sub-contractors. It established that the liability for service tax lies with the main contractor, not the sub-contractors, and emphasized the importance of disclosing credit details in compliance with rules to ensure transparency in availing tax credits. The decision highlighted the necessity of following legal provisions to uphold tax compliance standards and avoid disputes.

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Issues: Whether service tax credit could be denied on tax paid by sub-contractors for installation and commissioning services, and whether omission to file separate details with the ST-3 return defeated the credit.

Analysis: The services were admittedly provided by the sub-contractors and the tax had been discharged in two stages. The Tribunal applied the principle that credit cannot be denied merely because the tax was paid by the supplier/service provider, so long as the tax was actually paid and the transaction did not involve evasion. The record also did not support the Revenue's objection that the credit availed was concealed merely because a separate annexure was not filed with the return.

Conclusion: The credit was admissible and could not be denied; the objection based on non-filing of separate details was rejected.

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