TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2025 (8) TMI 501
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.... submissions with respect to the appeal filed by Revenue as well as on the contentions raised by them in their appeal. 1.1. Service Tax Appeal No. ST/78454/2018 has been filed by Revenue against dropping of the demands of service tax in the impugned order. 1.2. As both the appeals deal with the same Order- in-Appeal, all are taken up together for decision by a common order. 2. The facts of the case the appellant-assessee are engaged in the provision of construction service (other than residential construction), Works Contract Service, etc. They were registered with the Service Tax department and had been filing ST-3 returns regularly. 2.1. A Show Cause Notice (SCN) dated 14.10.2015 was issued to the appellant-assessee demanding Service tax along with cess to the tune of Rs.1,68,26,981/- for the period of 2010-11 to 2014-15. The SCN also demanded interest and penalty under section 78 & 77 of the Finance Act 1994. The demand in the SCN was made on the basis of difference between the information available in the 26AS statements received from Income Tax department and the details furnished by the appellant-assessee in the ST-3 returns filed by them. The demands raised in th....
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....demand of Service Tax of Rs. 28,19,194/- confirmed on the construction of Technician Studio for PWD, the appellant-assessee submits that the Technician Studio is a Govt. Constituted entity under the West Bengal Board of Technician Studio which is a Govt. of West Bengal controlled entity. Further, it is their submission that this construction work was entrusted to the appellant-assessee by the Public Works Department of the Govt. of West Bengal which is not a business entity, as has been accepted by the department in their Grounds of Appeal. Hence, the appellant- assessee contends that such construction work for Technician Studio provided to an entity of the West Bengal Govt. is exempted from Service Tax as per Para 12(a) and 12(c)(i) of Notification no. 25/2012- ST dated. 20/06/2012. 3.1. The appellant-assessee has not disputed their service tax liability on the Construction work done for M/s. Mackintosh Burn Ltd. Thus, the said issue is not in dispute before this Tribunal. 3.2. Regarding the dropping of the demand on the construction of Science City Exploration Hall by the Ld. Commissioner (Appeals) in the impugned order and the Revenue's appeal before this Tribunal on this ....
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....12 are not applicable. 5. Heard both sides and perused the appeal records. 6. Regarding the demand of Service Tax of Rs. 28,19,194/- confirmed on the construction of technician studio for PWD, we observe that the Studio was constructed by the Public Works Department of the Govt. of West Bengal which is not a business entity and the same has been accepted by the Department in their Grounds of Appeal. 6.1. It is further observed that for the above said activity, the appellant-assessee has claimed the exemption as provided under Sl. No. 12(a) and 12 (c)(iii) of the Notification No. 25/2012-ST, which reads as under: "12. Service provided to the Government, a local authority or a governmental authority by way of construction, erection, commissioning, installation, completion, fitting out, repair, maintenance, renovation or alteration of (a) a civil structure or any other original works meant predominantly for use other than for commerce, industry or any other business or profession. (c)(iii) a structure meant predominantly for use as an art or cultural establishment" 6.2. From the above, we observe that the Sl. No. 12(a) of ....
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.... the state. Thus, we find that the Technicians Studio can be considered as a structure predominantly used for promotion of art and culture of the state of West Bengal. Accordingly, we are of the view that the activities undertaken by the appellant-assessee are covered within the scope and ambit of the exemption as provided under Sl. No.12 (a) and 12(c)(iii) of the Notification 25/2012- S.T. 6.4. Thus, we find that the exemption as provided under Sl. No.12(a) and 12(c)(iii) of the Notification 25/2012-S.T. dated 20.06.2012 cannot be denied to the appellant-assessee on the ground that the said Studio has been used for commercial purposes also. 6.5. In view of the above findings, we hold that the construction work of Technician Studio provided by the appellant-assessee to the PWD department of the West Bengal Govt. is exempted from Service Tax as per Sl. Nos. 12(a) and (c)(iii) of Notification No. 25/2012-ST dated. 20/06/2012. Accordingly, we set aside the demand of service tax of Rs. 28,19,194/- confirmed on the construction of Technician Studio for the State PWD department. Since the demand itself is not sustainable, the question of demanding interest or imposing penalty on th....
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....relied on some case judgments like Sapoorji Paloonji& Co. Pvt Ltd vs CCEX& ST, Patna [2016(42) STR 681 (Pat)] wherein the petitioner was entrusted for construction activity of academic complex of IIT Patna to which benefit of exemption was denied under Notification No. 25/2012 dated 20.06.2012 by the Service Tax authority as it was argued that Indian Institute of Technology was not covered under the category of Negative List (Section 66D) of the Service Tax statute. (iii) But since the IIT was set up by an act of Parliament namely Indian Institute of Technology Act 1961, as an Institute of National Importance it was ultimately held that the said benefit of the notification is extendable to the construction activity undertaken therein. In another reference to the case of G. Ramamoorti Construction (1) Pvt Ltd vs Commr. (Adj) Coimbatore [2015(40)STR632(Mad)) by the appellant it was held by the Hon'ble Judge that construction of educational institution and hospitals- whether such educational institutions and hospitals are profit oriented or established solely for educational purpose without any profit, were not known to lower authorities- First respondent hold contrary on....
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....nd organizing science museums and also in training of personnel for museum profession. (vi) From the said expressed objectives, it is apparent that the said organisation is established for educational purpose particularly for the purpose of promotion, popularization and propagation of science and technology among the masses. Their declared objective according to the published website document is fully indicative of the above said purpose. (vii) According to the said website, as they declared that they come under Ministry of Culture, Government of India and were established under the administrative control of National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), which is an autonomous society under Department of Culture, Union Ministry of Education and Culture, Government of India, the website of NCSM (http://ncsm.gov.in) was also verified. It was learnt from the said organizational website that they administer 25 Science Centers / Museums /Planetariums spread all over India and out of which Science City Kolkata is a National level Centre of NCSM. The Memorandum of Association, Rules and Regulations and bye-law published in the said website were....