2022 (8) TMI 167

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....rsity and is in receipt of certain amounts collected by way of affiliation fee from Institutions affiliated to it. 2. Respondent No.1 has issued a show cause notice proposing to levy service tax on the affiliation fee collected by the petitioner. Aggrieved by the same, the instant writ petition is filed. 3. In the writ petition, the petitioner has challenged several provisions of Finance Act, 1994 (for short hereinafter referred to as 'Act') and the notifications issued thereunder along with the impugned show cause notice dated 20.06.2018 bearing No.SCN Sl.No.67/2018-19 vide Annexure-'B' to the writ petition. However, during the course of arguments, petitioner confines its prayer to the show cause notice at Annexure-'B' to the writ pe....

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....round, it is prayed that the writ petition be dismissed. 7. By way of the impugned show cause notice, the respondents have sought to impose service tax on the petitioner - University for the affiliation fee collected by it during the academic year - 2013-2014 to 2017-2018. As per the Act, the negative list of services which are not chargeable to service tax is contained in Section 66D and Clause(l) of Section 66D of the Act. Clause(l) of Section 66D reads as under:- "(l) Services by way of- (i) pre-school education and education up to higher secondary school or equivalent; (ii) education as a part of a curriculum for obtaining a qualification recognised by any law for the time being in force; (iii) ....

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....ee collected by the petitioner - University cannot be considered as a consideration for providing educational services. 11. As already stated above, the act of University in granting affiliation to a private college has to be considered as a service in furtherance of providing education and the decision of the respondents to consider otherwise is erroneous. 12. Thus, the question that arises for consideration is whether the petitioner is entitled to approach this Court merely on the issuance of show cause notice. 13. Normally, a person is bound to reply to the show cause notice issued by the Authority and it is not appropriate for him to approach the Court without doing the same. However, in the instant case, the dispute does not p....