TaxTMI 
TaxTMI 
2026 (10) TMI 123
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....t not to have entertained a writ petition, in the light of the availability of an effective alternative appellate remedy. He attempts to draw strength from the action of the writ petitioner in filing a departmental appeal against the order passed in respect of the same subject matter for the earlier period from April, 2012 to September, 2015 vide order dated 26.03.2018 in Order in Original No.13/2018-ST. 2.1. He would further contend that the earlier order was challenged by TNCSC by filing an appeal before the Commissioner (Appeals) in Order in Appeal No.16/2019-TRY (ST) and it had been allowed in favour of TNCSC on 09.01.2019 and there against the Department had filed an appeal before the CESTAT in Appeal No.ST/40546/2019. He would therefore argue that when there is a hierarchy of statutory appeals and further appellate remedy provided under the statutory scheme, it is impermissible for the writ Court to entertain a writ petition directly against the Order in Original passed by the second appellant, more so, when they filed statutory appeal against the order passed for the previous period. 2.2. On the merits of the matter, he would contend that TNCSC is not a government auth....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....with 90% or more participation by way of equity or control, it does not carry out any function entrusted to a Municipality under Article 243W of the Constitution of India, and therefore the order of the writ Court has to be set aside and prayed for allowing the writ appeal. 3. Per contra, the learned Additional Advocate General, Mr.B.Saravanan, assisted by Mr.G.Mohan Kumar, learned Additional Government Pleader would seek to support the order of the learned single Judge. He made the following submissions: 3.1. There are no disputed questions of facts involved in the case. TNCSC is established out of the policy decision of the Government of Tamil Nadu to set up an entity to procure, purchase, store, process, move and distribute the food grains and the other essential commodities under the Public Distribution System on behalf of the Cooperation Food and Consumer Production Department of the Government of Tamil Nadu. 3.2. TNCSC undertakes procurement of paddy, hulling and utilization of rice under the Decentralized Procurement System for the purpose of further distribution to the poor and needy through fair price shops. TNCSC is registered under Section 25 of the Companies Ac....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....interference in this appeal. 3.7. Regarding the preliminary objection raised by the Senior Standing Counsel for the Appellant Department, the learned Additional Advocate General would invite our attention to a recent judgment of the Honourable Supreme Court of India in Godrej Sara Lee Limited Vs Excise and Taxation Officer -cum- assessing authority and others reported in (2025) 11 SCC 808 and reminded ourselves of the long settled proposition that the availability of an effective alternative remedy is only a self-imposed restriction and it is not an absolute bar for the writ court to entertain the writ petition. 4. Heard the arguments advanced by Mr.R Gowri Shankar, learned senior standing Counsel appearing for the appellant and Mr B Saravanan the learned Additional Advocate General on behalf of the writ Petitioner, at length. We have perused the materials available on record. 5. We will take up the preliminary point argued by the learned senior standing counsel for the appellant that the writ court should not have entertained the writ petition in the light of the availability of an effective alternative appellate remedy against the order in original that was challenged be....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
.... also held that if the controversy is purely legal and does not involve disputed questions of fact, but only questions of law, then the case can be decided by the High Court and it need not be dismissed on the ground of availability of an alternative appellate remedy. In view of such categorical pronouncement by the Honourable Supreme Court of India, we overrule the objection raised by the learned Senior Standing Counsel on the entertainability of the writ petition. 9. Further, we cannot remain oblivious to the long pendency of this litigation. The Order in Original was passed on 19.02.2019 and the writ petition filed in 2019 was disposed in 2021 and this writ appeal was filed in 2021 and it is pending since then. The writ petition and the writ appeal had taken more than 7 years to attain finality. Therefore, it may not be proper for us to relegate the writ petitioner to the original authority either by setting aside the Order impugned before the Learned single Judge or grant liberty to the writ Petitioner to pursue the appellate remedy. 10. The learned single Judge had held that the appellant Department is bound by the order it suffered before the Commissioner (Appeals), Coi....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ce or Industry or any other business or profession and therefore, the services rendered by them are exempted under Section 12A(a). Similarly, TNCSC contends that it is eligible for exemption under Section 14(d), as it utilized the services of the private contractors towards construction of post-harvest storage infrastructure for agricultural produce, like paddy and other commodities and thus, their SS Godowns and its constructions will fall within the exemption. 16. In the Order in Original No.18/COMMR/ST/2019, which was impugned before the learned single Judge of this Court, the Commissioner had imposed the following levy under the Finance Act, 1994 upon the TNCSC. i) A demand of service tax of Rs. 2,63,01,725/- upon TNCSC towards works contract services received by them from the individual contractors during the period from October, 2015 to June, 2017 under Section 73(1) of the Finance Act, 1994. ii) Interest on the above amount of service tax under Section 75 of the Finance Act, 1994. iii) A penalty of Rs. 10,00,000/- under Section 76 for the failure of TNCSC to pay the service tax. iv) A penalty of Rs. 5,000/- under Section 77(1)(a) of the....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....fordable Housing in Partnership' framed by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation, Government of India; "(ca) low-cost houses up to a carpet area of 60 square metres per house in a housing project approved by the competent authority under: (i) the "Affordable Housing in Partnership" component of the Housing for All (Urban) Mission/Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana; (ii) any housing scheme of a State Government.". Inserted vide Notification 9/2016- Service Tax to be in effect from 1 March 2016. (d) post- harvest storage infrastructure for agricultural produce including a cold storages for such purposes; or (e) mechanised food grain handling system, machinery or equipment for units processing agricultural produce as food stuff excluding alcoholic beverages;" 18.We shall first take up the argument whether TNCSC is eligible for exemption under Clause 12A of the Mega Exemption Notification No.25/2012 dated 20.06.2012. To avail the said benefit, the entity like TNCSC should satisfy that it is a Governmental authority as prescribed under Clause 2(s) of the said Notification, which is extracted hereunder, (s) "governmental au....
X X X X Extracts X X X X
X X X X Extracts X X X X
....ule." The 12th schedule, reads as under: - "1. Urban planning including town planning; 2.Regulation of land use and construction of buildings; 3.Planning for economic and social development; 4.Roads and bridges; 5.Water supply for domestic, industrial, and commercial purposes; 6.Public health, sanitation, conservancy, and solid waste management; 7.Fire services; 8.Urban forestry, protection of the environment, and promotion of ecological aspects; 9.Safeguarding the interests of weaker sections of society, including the handicapped and mentally retarded; 10.Slum improvement and up-gradation; 11.Urban poverty alleviation; 12.Provision of urban amenities and facilities such as parks, gardens, and playgrounds; 13.Promotion of cultural, educational, and aesthetic aspects; 14.Burials and burial grounds, cremations and cremation grounds, and electric crematoriums; 15.Cattle ponds, prevention of cruelty to animals; 16.Vital statistics including registration of births and deaths; 17.Public amenities including street lighting, parking lot....