TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (3) TMI 1635
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....is of information, the Preventive Unit of the Department initiated an investigation against the appellant since the appellant provided taxable services under the category of 'Club or Association Service' but failed to discharge service tax amounting to Rs.52,85,307/- during the period 16.06.2005 to 31.03.2009 along with interest and penalty. On adjudication, the learned Commissioner has reduced the demand to Rs.50,98,330/- with interest and equivalent penalty under Section 78 and further penalties under different provisions of Finance Act, 1994. Hence, the present appeal. 3.1. At the outset, the learned Chartered Accountant for the appellant has submitted that the appellant is a charitable trust registered on 03.11.2000 with the objectiv....
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....ection 65(105); therefore, it is not liable to tax prior to that date. In support, they have referred to the judgment in the following cases: i. Glaxo Smithkline Pharmaceuticals Ltd. Vs. CCE [2005(188) ELT 171 (Tri. Bom.) ii. Board of Control for Cricket in India Vs. CST [2007(7) STR 384 (Tri. Mum.)] iii. KK Appachan Vs. CCE [2007(7) STR 230 (Tri. Bang.)] iv. CCE Vs. Sathguru Managament Consultants P. Ltd. [2007(7) STR 654 (Tri. Bang.)] 3.3. On demand of sponsorship services, the learned consultant has submitted that the sponsorship amounts received from various bodies to conduct golf tournaments. Under sub-clause (zzzn) of Section 65(105), the sponsorship relating to sports is excluded from levy of se....
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....ned adjudicating authority has not considered that the appellant is a charitable trust and registered with the Income Tax Department. All their accounts are duly submitted from time to time to the Income Tax Department and also they received tax exemption from the Karnataka Commercial Tax Department; hence, there is no intention to evade payment of tax; consequently, extended period of limitation cannot be invoked. 4. Learned AR for the Revenue has submitted that the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of State of West Bengal Vs. Calcutta Club Limited (supra) is not applicable to the facts of the present case as the appellant is only a trust and not a corporate entity or association of persons either under the Income Tax Ac....
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....ble to the facts of the present case. 7. We find that the issue of leviability of service tax on the services provided by a body or an association of persons to its members has been covered by the judgment of the Hon'ble Supreme Court in the aforesaid case. Their Lordships held as follows:- 72. The definition of "club or association" contained in Section 65(25a) makes it plain that any person or body of persons providing services for a subscription or any other amount to its members would be within the tax net. However, what is of importance is that anybody "established or constituted" by or under any law for the time being in force, is not included. Shri Dhruv Agarwal laid great emphasis on the judgments in DALCO Engineering Pr....
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....er and Sons v. CIT [(1955) 28 ITR 698, 704, 705] under examination now, was not, therefore, right in restricting the word "constitute" to mean only "to create", when clearly it could also mean putting a thing in a legal shape. The Bombay High Court, therefore, in the case of Dwarkadas Khetan and Co. v. CIT [(1956) 29 ITR 903, 907], was right in holding that the section could not be restricted in its application only to a firm which had been created by an instrument of partnership, and that it could reasonably and in conformity with commercial practice, be held to apply to a firm which may have come into existence earlier by an oral agreement, but the terms and conditions of the partnership have subsequently been reduced to the form of a doc....