TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (8) TMI 1608
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....elates to levy of Service Tax on the charges collected by the appellant, M/s Software Technology Parks of India (STPI), inter alia, towards certification of SOFTEX forms and issuance of No objection Certificates (NoCs) which have been classified by the Department under "Business Support Service" under the Finance Act, 1994. 2. In appeal no. ST/20226/2014, the dispute pertains to the period from 2007-08 to 2011-12 and involves service tax of Rs. 5,15,53,520/- along with interest and penalties. In appeal no. ST/30531/2016, relating to the period April 2012 to June 2012 service tax of Rs. 2,06,792/- along with interest and penalties was confirmed. The Commissioner (Appeals), in the later appeal, upheld the demand while extending cum-tax ben....
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....atutory nature of the functions performed by it and that the charges are prescribed and controlled by its Governing Council headed by the concerned Minister of the Government of India. The appellant relies on the following case laws: (i) Chandigarh Transportation Corporation Vs CCE, Chandigarh [2023 97) TMI 363 - CESTAT Chandigarh] (ii) Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board Vs CCT, Bangalore [2020-TIOL-860-CESTAT-BANG] (iii) Instrumentation Ltd., CCE & ST, Lucknow [2016 (45) STR 182 (Tri-All)] (iv) United Telecoms Ltd., Vs CST, Bangalore [2020-TIOL-811-CESTAT-BANG] (v) Central Power Research Institute Vs CCE, Bangalore-III [2006 (3) STR 637 (T) - affirmed in 2010 (17) STR J25 (Kar)] 6. ....
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....y into a sovereign function. A distinction has to be maintained between an activity which can only be performed by the State in exercise of sovereign authority and a service rendered by an autonomous body for facilitating the business operations of its clients or members. In the present case, the certification of SOFTEX forms, issuance of NoCs, and other assistance rendered to STP units are intrinsically connected with the business activities of software exporters. Such certification and approvals facilitate their experts, foreign exchange realisation and compliance with the regulatory framework. The appellant is therefore, providing assistance and support which enables the concerned units to carry on their business and export activities. T....
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....ody of an autonomous society cannot be equated with a statutory levy imposed by Parliament or under Authority of a Statute. 13. We also find no merits in the contention that since the certification can be performed only by the designated authority, the activity necessarily assumes sovereign character. Exclusivity or statutory authorisation to perform a particular activity is not, by itself, decisive. The relevant question is whether the amount collected is a sovereign/statutory extraction or consideration for an identifiable service rendered to a beneficiary. In the present case, there is a clear and direct relationship between the activity undertaken by STPI, the recipient STP/exporting unit and the charges collected. The concerned unit....
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....gned services in its statutory Service Tax returns and did not discharge service tax thereon. The fact that the appellant was registered under service tax and was paying tax on other identified services shows that it was fully aware of its obligations under the Finance Act, 1994. Mere availability of information with the appellant or production of records during Audit does not automatically establish disclosure of the relevant taxable activity in the prescribed returns. The taxable value came to be quantified upon a scrutiny and verification by the Department. In these circumstances, and having regard to the specific findings recorded by the Adjudicating Authority regarding non-declaration of the taxable receipts, we find no sufficient grou....