TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2018 (8) TMI 1689
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....has been constituted under the Delhi Agricultural Produce Marketing Act, 1998. The Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board has purchased land at Gazipur area for development of flower marketing committee. For facilitating the traders/retailers in the business of purchase and sale of flowers, the appellant have allotted land in the Gazipur market yard which is known as flower marketing committee to various dealers/traders on the basis of a monthly licence fee which varies between Rs. 2,560/- to Rs. 3,842/- per month. The Department has issued following three show cause notices : i) No. 312/AE/Gr-4/2013-14 dated 30/04/2013 ; ii) No. 840/2-13-14 dated 31/03/2014 ; and iii) No. 11/2014-15 dated 15/04/2015. to the appellant entertaining a view....
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....aining to agricultural and local bodies is exempted from the levy of service tax as they fall under the category of the negative list of items. It has further been added that Section 66D (a) the services by the Government or local bodies are exempted and as the APMC under which the appellant works is a local authority under the Delhi Agricultural Produce Marketing Regulation Act and is being assessed as the local authority by the Income Tax Authorities and thus they are not covered by the provisions of Service Tax Act. It has also been contended that apart from above, the activities covered under the negative list under Section 66D under sub-clause (d) the services by any Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee or Board provided by commiss....
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.... ; ii) Amca Batteries Limited, Bangalore vs. CCE - (2003) 4 SCC 41 ; iii) Surat Municipal Corporation vs. CCE - (2006) 5 STT 252 (CESTAT) 2. We have heard learned Departmental Representative who has reiterated the findings as given in the order-in-appeal. 3. We have heard both the sides and perused the record of appeal. 4. It is a matter of record that the appellant have provided phars/tin sheds on charging of a licence fee in the flower marketing yard at Gazipur. The licence fee for 'Phars'/Tin Sheds is chargeable on monthly basis and they have not paid any service tax on the amounts recovered as lease fee/rent from the various traders using the premises of the appellant. As per the provisions of Finance Act, 1994 the activity of th....
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.... - For the purposes of this sub-clause, an immovable property partly for use in the course or furtherance of business or commerce and partly for residential or any other purposes shall be deemed to be immovable property for use in the course or furtherance of business or commerce;' 5. It can be seen from the above definition that for an activity or service to be covered under the above definition following ingredients need to be satisfied : (i) That service must be provided by any person to any other person by renting of the immovable property ; (ii) That such renting is for use in the course of or for furtherance of the business or commerce examining the facts in the present case with regard to the above-mentioned two conditions. It ....
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....rvices to the extent they are not covered elsewhere- [(i) * * * * ] (ii) services in relation to an aircraft or a vessel, inside or outside the precincts of a port or an airport; (iii) transport of goods or passengers; or (iv) [Any service], other than services covered under clauses (i) to (iii) above, provided to business entities; Section 66D. (d) services relating to agriculture or agricultural produce by way of- (i) agricultural operations directly related to production of any agricultural produce including cultivation, harvesting, threshing, plant protection or [ * * * ] testing; (ii) supply of farm labour; (iii) processes carried out at an agricultural farm including tending, pruning, cutting, harvesting, dry....
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....nance Act, 1994. The provisions of Section 66D (d) (iv) of the Finance Act, 1994 only provides when the agriculture land is used for agriculture or for its producers but not for shops which are used for carrying out business or commerce. 8. In view of above, we are of the view that the activity of renting of phars/tin sheds/shops for marketing/trading of flowers etc. by the traders is taxable under the category of renting of immovable property and therefore we find that there is no infirmity in the orders passed by the subordinate authorities confirming the service tax on the amounts collected by the appellant from various traders towards lease fee or rent. 9. Now coming to the question of leviability of service tax under the extended tim....