<h1>Tribunal Upholds Penalties for Late Service Tax Payment; Ignorance and Non-Recovery Not Valid Excuses u/ss 76, 77.</h1> A tribunal ruled that non-recovery of service tax from clients is not a valid excuse for non-payment, nor is ignorance of the law a defense against service tax demands. The assessee, registered since June 2004, failed to pay taxes by the due dates and filed returns late. Despite paying the tax with interest before a show-cause notice, penalties under Sections 76 and 77 were imposed, as intent to evade tax is irrelevant to these sections. The tribunal upheld the penalties, agreeing with the Commissioner that neither ignorance nor confusion justified a waiver under Section 80.