AI OCR 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (3) TMI 506
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....amount of Rs.84,40,687/- was confirmed as service tax under the category of 'Business Auxiliary Service' (BAS) and 'Port Services', along with penalty under section 78, for the period 01.07.2006 to 31.03.2012. They are also in appeal against Order dt. 30.09.2015, vide Appeal No. ST/30024/2016, whereby, an amount of Rs.98,14,521/- has been confirmed as service tax payable under the category of BAS for the period April, 2012 to June, 2012 and under the category of 'services' for the period July, 2012 to September, 2013. 2. The brief facts are that the appellants are, inter alia, engaged in providing certain services and levy, collect and retain charges for said port services in terms of agreement dt.19.03.1999 between the appellant and the....
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....rimarily engaged in providing port services but they are also otherwise engaged in maintaining the port. In this regard, they are undertaking various activities including capital dredging, improvement to aids to navigation, vessel traffic management, etc. Similarly, they are also engaged in maintaining certain common facilities like roads, drainage, streetlights, railway links, etc. For all these activities, the GOAP has allowed them to charge additional 15% on the actual expenditure incurred on above works to cover their overheads and taxes. He has further submitted that the 'port dues' are nothing but an income collected from the user of the port and the entire amount so collected is kept in dedicated fund to meet the expenditure for main....
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.... acting on behalf of the GOAP in receiving the services rendered for maintenance of harbor by engaging the required service providers and making payment for services from fund generated by pooling the statutory levy i.e., port dues. According to the appellant, the port due charges, which were collected from different port users, has already suffered service tax and the appellant only retained 15% from the port dues in the ledger entry and the said position was clarified to the visiting audit officer for various periods in the past. He has further submitted that Concessionaire agreement is for exclusive right and authority granted to the appellant to run the port on its own account and not as an agent, much less a commission agent. He ....
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....tricity, etc., there cannot be any payment of service tax, which is in consonance with the Tribunal's Final Orders No. A/30298/2024 dt.09.05.2024 and A/30849- 30851/2020 dt.21.02.2020. 6. Learned AR, on the other hand, has submitted that the appellants are undertaking certain work relating to improvement, maintenance, survey, etc., on behalf of the GOAP and for the said services, the GOAP is paying not only actual charges but also an additional 15% on the actual expenditure, which is likely to be charged as service under BAS. Insofar as the grounds of limitation, he has, inter alia, submitted that mere visit to the appellant's premises would not suffice that coming to definite conclusion that extended period of limitation cannot be invok....
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....n going through the agreement, we find that essentially they are the only concessionaire to run the port and it was mutually agreed that they will undertake all the improvement, maintenance, etc., including dredging. Further, in order to meet the expenses for said purpose, it was allowed that the said expenditure will be met from the port dues fund and the appellant will also be entitled for 15% retention of amount to meet their overheads and taxes. It is important here to understand that when the port dues, which is a statutory levy, is collected by the appellant, it has suffered service tax under the respective categories, which is an admitted fact and also certified by the CA. The income so generated is credited in statutory fund, which ....