TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2023 (2) TMI 611
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.... certiorari or any other appropriate writ, order or direction to quash the impugned provision of law contained in Section 124(2) and that contained in Section 130(2) of the Act as ultra vires, illegal and unconstitutional. 2. The petitioner is an assessee under the erstwhile service tax regime being a company engaged in providing services in the oil and gas sector. The Service Tax Department requisitioned the month wise data/figure from the petitioner for the period 01.04.2013 to 31.03.2014 in relation to equipment lost. During the course of enquiry, petitioner paid an amount of Rs.4 lakhs on 06.02.2015. The petitioner faced similar enquiry for subsequent financial years as well and was served with show cause notices qua evasion of service tax. The details of the same are as under:- SCN Details Period Involved Service tax demanded 27/ST/Div-16/ 2015-16 dated October 14, 2015 ("SCN 1") April 01, 2013-March 31, 2014 INR 7,64,64,303 32/ST/2015-16 dated March 31, 2016 ("SCN 2") April 01, 2014-March 31, 2015 INR 4,39,15,018 07/ST/Div-XVI/2017-18 dated March 26, 2017 ("SCN 3") April 01, 2015-March 31, 2016 INR 7,94,89,780 05/Div-East-1/2019-20/84....
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....is granted to a particular class of persons and is not extended to all similarly situated persons. While dealing with the notification issued under the taxation statute, Apex Court held that the notification has to apply to the entire class and the Government cannot create subclassification thereby excluding one sub-category, even when both the same categories are of same genus. He further submits that retention of money other than pre-deposit by the Government by resorting to the provision contained in Section 124(2) and those contained in Section 130(2) shall amount to collecting an amount over and above the computed tax liability which will be without authority of law, hence illegal. 7. In the written statement filed by Union of India, it has been claimed that the scheme contained in the Act is a one time measure for liquidation of past disputes arising out of Central Excise and Service Tax and also to ensure disclosure of unpaid taxes by a person eligible to make the declaration. It has been further claimed that as per settled proposition of law, the legislature enjoys wide latitude in taxation statutes and the same should not be subjected to the minute gravities of Article ....
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....no relief shall be available with respect to tax dues. (2) The relief calculated under sub-section (1) shall be subject to the condition that any amount paid as predeposit at any stage of appellate proceedings under the indirect tax enactment or as deposit during enquiry, investigation or audit, shall be deducted when issuing the statement indicating the amount payable by the declarant: Provided that if the amount of predeposit or deposit already paid by the declarant exceeds the amount payable by the declarant, as indicated in the statement issued by the designated committee, the declarant shall not be entitled to any refund. 130. (1) Any amount paid under this Scheme,- (a) shall not be paid through the input tax credit account under the indirect tax enactment or any other Act; (b) shall not be refundable under any circumstances; (c) shall not, under the indirect tax enactment or under any other Act,- (i) be taken as input tax credit; or (ii) entitle any person to take input tax credit, as a recipient, of the excisable goods or taxable services, with respect to the matter and time period covered in the declara....
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.... the scheme is to liquidate the legacy dispute and not to grant any kind of amnesty. It is a legislation to reduce the legacy litigation against positive payment of a part of the disputed dues of tax to encourage voluntary disclosures of undisclosed evaded taxes with an intent to end old or pending indirect tax disputes. 14. As per settled law statutes are not to be construed as theorems of Euclid but with some imagination of the purpose which lie behind them. The interpretation cannot be too literal in meaning of words that it misses the soul and sees the skin only. With respect to the fiscal statutes, it is trite law that the tests of vice of discrimination in the taxating law is less rigorous. Reference can be made to the observations made by the Apex Court in Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Association of India vs. Union of India (1989) 3 SCC 634, wherein Apex Court held that:- "xx xx xx 46. It is now well settled though taxing laws are not outside Article 14, however, having regard to the wide variety of diverse economic criteria that go into the formulation of a fiscal-policy legislature enjoys a wide latitude in the matter of selection of persons, subje....